Welcome Home
by Arbmaster 16
Summary: Reality is often too harsh for freedom, but when two people lost in their current world find a gateway to a new beginning, they leave one life to start another. They both know that their lives will change forever, but will they be able to cope in these unfamiliar surroundings and will it be all that they hoped it would be?
1. Disconnect

**Hello Everyone! Welcome to _'Welcome Home'_!**

**First off, this story has a few OC's in it. The majority of which, are mine and one which, is someone else's, but I will go into more detail about that in the chapter where that OC shows up.**

**This is a big move for me, since I've never done and OC story before. I hope you all enjoy it!**

**Since there isn't much else to say, I'll just do the disclaimer and allow you to read on. There will be a chapter every Saturday until it is finished! So, I'll see you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in the Sonic franchise. They belong to SEGA. Arby, Nocturne, Jak, Sage, Dové, Zeus and Angel are all my characters and belong to me.**_

* * *

Another dreary day was soon upon me. Good god how I hated getting up in the morning, especially when college was involved. I hated how days would pass and nothing would change. I was tired of the typical everyday life with nothing even vaguely interesting happening. Even the voice in my head agreed. Her name was Justine, despite it technically being my name. I preferred my nickname, Arby, and things went from there.

"Maybe there'll be a fight today?" The one in my mind asked me.

"Pfft, we hope that every day, but that never happens. All we do is bitch behind each other's backs." I responded coldly.

"To be fair, we do that too." Justine replied. She sounded exactly like me with her voice being deep enough to be able to tell the difference.

"To vent." I reasoned with her. Just when I thought there would be one day where things would be fine, things inevitably got worse.

* * *

_1 Hour Later…_

* * *

After lazily walking up two flights of stairs to class and sitting as far from the teacher as possible, I turned my music up and daydreamed. Images filled my head, images that were better than the reality I lived every day. These half-existing adventures would change depending on what song was on and it would pass time a hell of a lot quicker. I would dream of another world, a better world where there was no need to question the possibility of suicide every time my eyes opened from a restless sleep.

The day was Monday; not the worst day of the week, but not the best either. It would normally be seven hours of 'catching up with coursework', which we never had the motivation to do, but the first lesson wielded something I was sure we all dreaded; assignment hand backs. One by one the teacher, Debby, would give each of us back work to either sign off or upgrade depending on whether we were happy with the grade or not.

"Shit." I whispered to myself knowing exactly what was coming. Justine laughed.

"I was just about to say that." She chuckled some more. I was tempted to tell her to shut up, but the risk of drawing unnecessary attention to myself wasn't worth it. With an emotionless face, she handed me some work that I had finished last week only to see the usual 'R' written on it. It stood for 'referral', which I assumed was another way of saying 'fail'. Normally I would just brush it off and upgrade it at home, but this assignment I actually put some effort into.

"Why did I fail this time?" I asked with frustration clear in my voice.

"It was good, but you just needed more detail." She told me before handing out more work. There it was. The magic word: 'detail'. This single word had caused more 'R's' than Team Rocket. "I've booked computers, so any work you need to finish you can do now." She told us. As we walked, Justine began talking to me.

"Do you think she even cares?" She asked. I walked slower to separate from everyone else so I could answer.

"Of course not. As long as she gets paid she couldn't care less. Same goes for every other teacher here." We were both quiet after that and once I was on a computer, I turned up my music once again and journeyed to my better world.

In this world, societal ills didn't exist. Every day was worth living and people lived exciting lives, whether they were saving the world or solving crimes. Humanity, as much as it liked to think it was, wasn't the dominant species on the planet. This world was something that I would beg to exist, simply so I could start anew there and become a far better person than I could ever hope of becoming here. This world was commonly known as Mobius with a vast, unique race known as Mobians. They weren't human, fortunately. Instead, they were humanoid animals ranging from mammals to reptiles and everything in between. They would walk and talk and live lives like humans, but would look significantly different. Sonic the Hedgehog was the most popular and most famous of this unique species, but my thoughts would always travel to the under-appreciated members of the Mobian race: Espio the Chameleon, Charmy Bee and Vector the Crocodile with the only exception being Shadow the Hedgehog. To mix things up I would often pair up Espio and Shadow since their personalities were so alike. They were quiet, independent and serious despite having very different lives. Just as I was getting comfortable, Justine spoke again.

"Quick question before you leave the Earth's surface; if you were to be a Mobian, what would you look like?" I really thought hard about the question, but in the end joined my two favourites together without it looking weird.

"I'd be a hedgehog like Shadow, but instead of red markings, I would have purple, like Espio. What about you?" I asked in return.

"Not a clue to be honest, I'd like to be a chameleon though. Climbing walls and turning invisible. Imagine how much fun that would be." I wasn't surprised by her answer; she liked the same characters I did. She was in my mind after all.

To our surprise, the two teachers we had in the afternoon were both at some emergency meeting, which meant we were only in for the morning and then got to go home. The bus home was pleasant with no other people on board, except of course, the driver.

* * *

About 45 minutes later and I made it home to the surprise of my mother, who I said a quick hello to before retreating to my room with a hot cup of tea.

"It's only one in the afternoon, maybe we should do something?" Justine began. Personally, I wasn't up for anything. All I wanted to do was go back to bed, but I heard her out nonetheless.

"What have you got in mind?" My voice lacked the enthusiasm.

"Nothing outrageous, just a walk or something. Maybe to your old high school?" I shuddered at the thought. I have enough bad memories to deal with, the last thing I needed was to return to the site of many of them.

"Anywhere, but there." I said bitterly, which certainly got my point across.

"Your old primary school?" That idea definitely caught me off-guard. I hadn't been there since I was 12 and all of a sudden she wanted to go back?

"What the hell? Why there?" I questioned.

"Do you remember it being abandoned?"

"What?! Seriously? I never knew that!" I exclaimed in surprise.

"Oh…" She replied sheepishly. "Must've forgotten to tell you." I sighed loudly in response.

"I guess we could… got nothing better to do… except maybe sleep."

"Great!" She said excitedly, obviously ignoring my last comment. "Let's get going." With little time to breath, I finished my tea and headed out. My old primary school was quite the hike from where I lived and involved walking up many hills, but I was certainly awake by the time we got there.

* * *

A winter storm was in full swing and while it wasn't raining, an icy wind was trying to tear the landscape apart. It felt as if knives were trying to get through the leather jacket and red bandanna which clung to my neck, both did no good at keeping my small body warm. The view on the other hand was phenomenal.

The school was on a high hill overlooking the harbour, which was under siege by the untamed ocean. To the left of us was a large field, which I remembered playing on during the summer months as a kid and to the right was the abandoned school itself.

"Whoa…" I whispered in disbelief at how much it had changed. The building was old in its own right, being originally built out of simple stone bricks, but now it had lost its welcoming glow and reassurance that real life was still years away. It was as if it had grown more brutal with age… just as I had.

"Some sight, huh?" Justine spoke, reminding me that she existed.

"It looks and feels so different." I was nearly lost for words whilst staring at this living metaphor of adulthood. "So broken…" I whispered once more. Justine could tell I was thinking deep again and tried to bring me out of it.

"It's ok. The old park on the field is still there. Wanna sit for a bit?" I nodded and began walking away from the school with an odd feeling of relief as I turned away from it.

Once there, I sat on one of the swings with an underlying fear that the chains holding it up would snap at any moment. Justine knew I had a lot to think about and chose to remain quiet. I was brought back to Earth when I noticed something… not quite right near the fence. I first thought that I was imagining things until I saw it again; the faintest shimmer. It didn't take long for Justine to notice my sudden perk in curiosity.

"What is it?" She asked me.

"Over there, are you seeing that to?" After a few silent moments, she confirmed that I hadn't completely lost my mind… yet.

"Yeah, that weird distortion. The fuck is that?" I shrugged and decided to get up and move closer. With every step, it became more visible with the distortion becoming clearer.

"What is it?" I asked, forgetting that Justine had asked it first.

"I'm… not sure. Is it dangerous?"

"I don't know." I replied simply and tried to extend my arm to touch it.

"Are you crazy?!" She snapped at me. "What if it tears your arm off?!"

"Thanks for putting that image in my head." I groaned sarcastically.

"Come on, we have no idea what this thing is." Justine was obviously unsure, but I didn't share her concerns. "It could be a gate to the Underworld or the Distortion Realm."

"Or we could not jump to conclusions that something unfamiliar is instantly hostile." I could tell she wanted to reply, but couldn't. I had made my point, it wasn't her fault though. The vast majority of the human race was like this. They would freak out over something small and attempt to wipe it from existence.

"Ok…" Justine continued trying to be reasonable. "What do you think it is?"

"Well, judging by the crazy shit I've seen on TV, my only guess would be that it's some kind of portal."

"Portal?" The way she said it made it sound as if the suggestion was ridiculous. Perhaps it was, or maybe it was normal and the rest of the world was ridiculous. "To where?"

"I don't know!" I said losing my patience. "But, we could find out."

"…Please tell me you're kidding?" Justine asked in an uncomfortably calmer tone, but the five second silence soon made it obvious that I was being serious. "No way! Fuck that! What if we never come back?! Or we get killed?! You've got family and friends here who would be devastated if something happened to you!" There's the speech again. I truly wanted to believe that people would miss me, but given enough time, they would all move on and resume their lives.

"Are you sure about that?" I groaned depressingly.

"Don't do this to me Arb! We don't know what's on the other side!" With her constant yelling, I soon snapped.

"What if something amazing is on the other side?! What if the true meaning of freedom is waiting for us there? Or dare I say it, something better than our current doomed existence?!" We were both suddenly silent. I could feel her fear, but with everything I had, I chose to ignore it.

"Look, I know I can't physically stop you, but at least think about it. What if we do find this great place, but can never come back? I know you'd miss people here even if you don't want to admit it." Now she had made a good point. While there were few people that I dared to care about, I know I would miss those few people.

"Ok but, what if we can come back?" She thought about it before answering.

"Then… I don't see the harm in it, but we don't know any of that."

"And we'll never know unless we take this chance. For once in our lives can we not wimp out and remain quiet?" I heard a defeated sigh, which I assumed was my green light. My stomach churned with anxiety as I approached the gateway, but the thought of going back to a normal, repetitive life was enough motivation to get me to jump through.

"I hope you know what you're doing." Justine said just before I ventured forward.

"I'm human; I never know what I'm doing."


	2. New Leaf

**Welcome back! It's Saturday again and as promised, I've got another chapter for you. They should be longer from here on out.**

**Not a lot to share otherwise. My days tend to be pretty routine, which I'm fine with. There's always a chapter or something that needs my attention. I'd better get to it.**

**See you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

Things were black. That's the only way I can explain it. I knew I was alive, I could feel my tired body no longer moving. I couldn't hear anything either. Maybe I was in the void? Nothing was certain. For a split second, I wanted to go home. To see familiar faces again and to see my room that would protect me from the world. I wanted to break down over my haunting fear of life itself and I wanted to cower in my mother's arms, like the child I never got to be. I could feel myself welling up, yet I wasn't awake. I don't think Justine was either, since my thoughts were my own and not just her voice. The silence was almost blissful, but another wave of tiredness stopped me from appreciating it. Before I knew what was happening, I was gone again.

* * *

"Arby!" I heard a feminine voice shout out to me. "Wake up for fuck sake! You have got to see all of this!" I slowly gained a grip on reality. The feeling in my fingers soon came back followed by my hands, wrists, arms and then everything else. I clenched my fists to make sure I was really awake before opening my eyes. I was lying by the side of a road being shaken violently in order to wake up. My eyes glanced upwards and they quickly shot open when I noticed a black and red chameleon was the one shaking my shoulder. There were four horns on its head and it was wearing dark green boots and white gloves. By instinct, my body shot to life as I suddenly got up and backed away.

"Who-who are you?" I stuttered. It held its arms up and began to speak.

"Whoa! Take it easy! It's me, Justine!" I froze at the mention of her name and studied her. She was indeed a chameleon and one quick pinch told me I wasn't dreaming.

"Ju-Justine?!" I exclaimed in shock. She nodded and approached me before reminding me what had happened.

"It seems like that portal did a hell of a lot more than just bring us to a new world." I had to take a second to absorb what I had just heard. _'A new world?'_ For the first time since waking up, I looked around. Tall apartment blocks surrounded us and there were a lot of people walking through the streets. That's when I noticed that not all of them were people, there were also dogs, cats, lizards, birds and so much more.

"Where are we?" I asked despite already having a good indication in my mind. I simply wanted confirmation.

"Think about it; walking, talking animals? While you were out, a Labrador came up to us and asked if you were ok!"

"Seriously?" She nodded again.

"Oh and another detail you might have missed… look down." I gave her a strange look, but did as she told me. Once I looked down, I noticed myself. I was very different. I noticed my legs were covered in black fur and I was wearing boots that were white, red and purple. Upon further inspection, despite my shoes changing, I realised that I still had my red and black leather jacket and my red bandanna along with the addition of white gloves on my hands instead of my usual red and black fingerless ones. "Your eyes look really weird." Justine suddenly spoke, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"What's wrong with them?"

"Nothing's 'wrong' so to speak. You remember that little buzz saw icon thing you would always use?" I nodded. "Well, those _are_ your eyes." She said bluntly. Another baffled look was plastered on my face, which she could tell meant that she needed to explain further. "There's a purple spot in the middle, then the red saw around that and then the larger green saw behind that." I grinned at the thought. I felt badass and powerful despite most likely being the same wimp I was back home.

"Do I have quills?" I asked out of nowhere. Justine grinned.

"Yep, all upturned and everything." I almost squealed, but managed to keep it hidden since we were in public.

"Awesome!" I exclaimed. "Wait a sec…" I continued after thinking it over. "Humans exist here. How come our- I mean-my human form has changed?" Justine simply shrugged her scaly shoulders, which prompted me to ask another question. "You know you're a chameleon, right?" She nodded with another grin.

"I haven't figured out how to go invisible, yet but I can change colour. Watch." She effortlessly changed from her black and red markings to black and purple. "Now I look like you!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"Alright alright…" I began, bringing us both back from our fun. "What the hell do we do now? We're in some kind of big city with no food, money or a place to go." Justine changed back to her normal colours and began to think.

"I guess all we can do while the weather's nice is look around. This place could become a death sentence at night." I nodded in agreement and began walking with only our instincts guiding us. Justine began talking in order to pass the time. "Are we on Mobius?" I chose not to answer and she continued to explain why she asked that at all. "Think about it. With the infinite amount of universes we could have been sent to, it's possible that we may be in a world that's similar, but not exact." I sighed worriedly, thinking that we may be somewhere that we had no idea about. At least Sonic's world was internationally famous back on Earth.

"I'd like to think we are. I haven't seen anything that completely disproves it."

"But, we haven't seen anything that completely proves it either." Justine added.

"Then we can't jump to conclusions. Let's see if we can find someone or something that we know is from Sonic's universe." We both nodded and smiled as we continued to look around.

The city seemed pretty typical with its sky scrapers, heavy traffic 24/7 and people struggling to get from one destination to another, whether they were on foot or in a vehicle. At least it looked prettier than the cities I had seen previously. The buildings were a variety of colours and some had big corporate logos on the side instead of it being a dead, grey, concrete ocean.

"Should I change my name?" Justine said completely out of nowhere.

"…What?"

"Well, we're in a different universe where no one knows us. We could literally start anew here. Besides, I never really warmed to my name." She told me.

"But, I like the name Justine. It suits you." I tried to tell her.

"But, it's technically your name. We only gave it to me because we couldn't think of anything else."

"I'm sticking with 'Arby', thanks. That's what people called me on Earth and that is what people will call me here." I stated with an unamused expression.

"See? You get a cool nickname, so I think I should to." She complained.

"Wait… you think 'Arby' is cool?" She turned away from me and I swear if she wasn't a chameleon I would have seen her cheeks go a little red.

"Alright fine, I admit it." She owned up in defeat. I smiled smugly to myself before she quickly got back on topic. "So, what should my new name be?"

"You didn't have anything in mind?" I asked her.

"I didn't know where to start and any names I came up with just didn't work for me." I began to think and decided to start simple.

"What about something chameleon related?"

"You want to call me Reptile?" She said sarcastically. I shook my head slowly. "Scaly?" I shook my head again. "Four horns?" I rolled my eyes.

"Ok, maybe that wasn't a good idea. What about your colour?" I must have struck something when she held a hand on her chin.

"Not black or red." I wasn't certain if she meant that or not, so I gave her a bit of a helping hand.

"Not directly of course. I mean maybe something along the lines of Crimson or Midnight." She nodded with approval at my suggestions, but still wasn't sure.

"This is so difficult! How come Espio's name works so well for him?" She groaned in annoyance.

"Because it suits his personality. He's a ninja and his name is 'I spy' in Spanish with the addition of it sounding awesome." I noticed Justine roll her eyes about how I was going on about one of my favourites.

"Yeah yeah, that's only because you love the guy."

"There's a difference between love and respect. He's strong enough to not give a fuck about what anyone thinks, whilst still having good morals. Wish I could do that." I explained. Without a response, I assumed she had gone back to thinking of a new name.

"So, I need something that sums up my personality?"

"I guess. Maybe sociopath?" I chuckled, but she didn't look at all amused.

"Oh ha fucking ha. I know I used to be a nutcase, but I've calmed down a lot since then. If anything, you're worse than me now." I wanted to argue, but in many ways she was right and I instead stayed silent. Justine continued to mumble words to herself and shaking her head afterwards in disapproval. I chuckled to myself, thankfully she didn't notice.

We walked for at least an hour before we came across a public park. It had several trees dotted around, lush, green grass and a decent sized pond in the middle. A bench on the top of a small hill seemed like a good place to sit and figure things out. I leaned my head on my arm trying to think of something.

"Try to relax Arb; we're bound to find a lead at some point."

"What if we don't? We're just as likely to die here as we are anywhere else." Justine tried to reassure me, but she knew that it didn't take much to get me down.

"We could ask around. People on Mobius, assuming this is Mobius, tend to be friendly, right?" I thought about it and knew there couldn't be any harm in asking a question.

"Ok, who do we ask?"

"There's a squirrel reading a book under that tree over there. Come on." Justine made her way over to the squirrel with me following close behind. "Wait." She halted. "What do we ask?"

"Where the Chaotix HQ is?" She narrowed her eyes at me knowing I would say something like that, but then sighed and nodded. As we approached, I could feel myself getting more and more anxious. What was I so worried about?

"Excuse me." Justine said in a more formal voice. The squirrel looked up from his book. He wasn't smiling, but his expression in general seemed friendly. "Do you know where the Chaotix Detective Agency is?" He was quiet at first, but then smiled warmly at us and began giving us directions.

"Thank you so much." I said with more relief than intended before we both walked in the direction he had pointed in.

"Ok then Arby, which are you happier about: asking for directions or the Chaotix being here?" For me, it was obvious.

"Chaotix, hands down." I was definitely more relaxed now that we had a destination in mind, but I soon became nervous again knowing that I would actually meet the team I admired since childhood.

"Just be cool, ok? They're regulars like us." Justine reassured.

"If regular means popping up from some other world… yeah, sure." I pointed out, only to receive an irritated grunt.

"Wait, but I still need a name!" She suddenly panicked. I went to scratch my head, forgetting I had quills instead of hair. As a result, I jumped thinking there was something on me. I got an odd look from Justine before she figured out what had happened. "Not used to your quills yet, huh?"

"Nope." I replied. "So, back to it, what about Scarlett?"

"It's good, don't get me wrong, but I just don't… feel it. Does that make any sense?" I nodded, knowing what she meant and continued searching my brain. "Oh! Oh!" She suddenly jumped up.

"What is it?"

"What about Nocturne?" She suggested. I said it a few times and it sounded good, but I couldn't help but feel that I had heard it from somewhere.

"Where did you get that from?" She shied away a little, but then began to speak.

"Well… you remember that old story you did about how our own minds can turn against us?" I nodded. "Who was the main protagonist called?" My eyes widened at the realisation.

"…Nocturne." I stared at her; partially shocked that she remembered back that far. "You really want that name?"

"Please?" I sighed, but then nodded. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"So, I have to call you Nocturne from now on?" She nodded with a wide smile.

* * *

We were quiet for a little while until we came across rows of houses on the outskirts of the city, with one on the end being particularly familiar.

"Hey Arb, do you see that?" Nocturne pointed to a yellow house at the end of the street. I gulped.

"Uhuh." I said a bit too quietly, causing her to see my worried face.

"Everything will be fine. It'll be just like earlier with that squirrel guy."

"Not really. We'll be asking for a job and a place to live, which is completely normal by the way." I said sarcastically.

"Should we come up with a story?" Nocturne suggested, but I shook my head.

"No, lying would only get us into more shit. We have to be completely honest with them, so that they can trust us." I told her.

"Alright, we'll do it your way." She finished before we approached their front door. "Who's gonna knock?" She turned to me and asked. Without warning, I stepped in front of her and knocked just so the anxiety would go away. A very faint buzzing approached the door, which gave us both a good idea of who was going to answer. Just as expected, a small black and yellow bee answered and gave a curious look to both of us.

"Hello!" He exclaimed happily. "Can I help you?" He was surprisingly polite for a 6 year old or it was just because he didn't know us.

"Hey Charmy!" I shouted in excitement, forgetting that he had no idea who we were. He raised a brow.

"How do you know my name?" Nocturne turned and gave me a glare, but I quickly came up with an answer.

"Oh… I just think you're awesome!" The compliment worked and took the child's mind off of it.

"Thank you!"

"Charmy, who's at the door?" A loud voice boomed from the back of the room. It was obviously Vector.

"These two girls, a chameleon and a hedgehog. They think I'm awesome!" Charmy told him.

"Really? That can't be right." Vector replied.

"Vector!" Charmy yelled, feeling insulted. The crocodile got up from his desk and came to the door.

"Can we help you?" He asked in a softer voice, probably to be polite. Nocturne was the one to talk while I kept my mouth shut.

"We were actually wondering if you were hiring right now." She told him. Vector seemed shocked at first, which was understandable. Two complete strangers asking for work and he still didn't know that we were looking for a place to stay as well.

"The more hands the better, I guess. Come on in and we can talk." He said before going back to his desk. We followed and I shut the door behind me. He gestured for us to sit on one of the two couches in front of his desk, which were surprisingly comfortable. Being as curious as I am, I looked around.

The place was small, but cosy with stairs leading to a landing with 3 doors, which I assumed were their bedrooms. There was another door downstairs, which I thought was the bathroom as the kitchen was through an open doorway next to Vector's desk. There was a TV at the other end of the room next to some lockers. My entire body froze when my eyes laid upon a purple chameleon leaning against the lockers with his eyes closed.

"Oh my god…" I mouthed to myself silently. I couldn't stop staring out of sheer disbelief. It was him, Espio the Chameleon. He was stood right there. My mind struggled to comprehend that simple detail, until I got an elbow in the ribs.

"Snap out of it, Arb." Nocturne said to me.

"Oh, err right. Sorry." I apologised in embarrassment.

"Anyway…" Vector began. "…let's start with the basics. What're ya names?"

"Nocturne."

"Arby." We both said one after the other. Vector nodded as he wrote things down. Charmy came up to me and sat down.

"You look like uncle Shadow." He said with a beaming smile.

"Yeah, I know." I said nervously. "He's cool, huh?" That comment definitely earned some favourite points from the bee child.

"Yeah! He's so awesome!" He jumped up and started buzzing around. It reminded me of when I was little, being happy all the time. It was the complete opposite now.

"Charmy, calm down." Vector said before turning back to us. "How old are ya both?"

"16." I said for both of us.

"So, where are ya from?" Shit. Now we had to explain ourselves, but they'd be fine with it, right? Nocturne looked simply terrified, which unfortunately Charmy noticed.

"What's up?" He asked her.

"I just… feel a little unwell, that's all."

"Everything will be just fine." I held her shoulder in comfort, but she still seemed very uneasy. I guess it was going to be me to explain the situation. I turned to Vector to give him my full attention. "You see… we're not really from anywhere around here." He looked a little confused, but shrugged it off.

"You mean out of town?" He asked. I shook my head slowly.

"Much further. It's kind of complicated."

"How much further?" He continued to question. I took a deep breath and allowed the bluntness of honesty to shine.

"We're not from this world." I said casually as if it wasn't a big thing.

"What?!" Vector exclaimed.

"Whoa!" Charmy yelled.

"Huh?" Espio grunted to himself in the corner after opening one eye to observe us.

"Then… where are ya from?" Charmy asked us with curiosity clear in his eyes. I smiled at him, thinking that he would probably be the only one to find our situation 'awesome'.

"We're from a planet called Earth, a human world, and we were dropped onto Mobius when we walked through this random portal that we found." I explained. Charmy looked excited, while Vector seemed confused.

"But, you're not human." Vector stated.

"We were." I told him, which earned me three jaw drops. I was surprisingly proud of myself.

"How is that possible?" It was clear that Vector was struggling with the idea, while Charmy just found it fascinating. Espio on the other hand stayed quiet and listened in.

"I have no idea. That's just what happened and now we're here with nothing but the clothes we're wearing." Out of nowhere, Charmy raised a good question.

"So, if you guys aren't from around here, then how did you know my name?"

"Back on Earth, your entire world is internationally famous. There are games, comics, and TV series about this world, with Sonic being the main star for the majority of those."

"How come Sonic gets the limelight?!" Vector spoke up in annoyance. "We save lives to!"

"If anything, I agree with you. You guys along with Shadow are our favourite characters." I said to try and lighten the mood.

"Yay! We're better! Chaotix is better!" The bee next to me jumped up.

"So, you know everything about us?" A deep voice spoke from the corner. Everyone else in the room suddenly turned to him. I shrugged my shoulders fearing that my voice would fail me. "Prove it." He asked bluntly. An awkward silence descended upon the room, until Charmy broke it.

"You always gotta be the one to bring everyone down." He complained. Espio ignored him and kept his attention upon me.

"Alright, what do you want to know?" I asked.

"Anything about us or our world in general." He explained. I nodded and thought for a moment.

"Vector the Crocodile, age 20. Charmy Bee, age 6 and Espio the Chameleon, age 16." I began. Charmy and Vector looked amazed while Espio nodded, hinting for me to continue. "Charmy was unfortunately captured in the Egg Grape Chambers, which is partially the reason why he acts the way he does." Charmy tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. I looked to Vector who shook his head. I guess Charmy wasn't ready for that yet. After a few seconds of silence, I continued. "Vector puts on a fake accent to disguise that he was originally from Downunda."

"How the hell?!" He panicked and hid under his desk. I then turned back to Espio, whose eyes had widened slightly. I also noticed his breathing had deepened significantly. He couldn't be nervous… could he?

"You are an expert ninja reigning from the clan of Shinobi. The Bride of Constant Vigil, or the Shinobi leader to the rest of us, is your mother." His jaw dropped upon hearing the info.

"That's… impossible." He said quietly, but loud enough for us to hear. "I've told no one that." He placed a hand on his chin and thought about this new situation for a few moments. "Then what you say is true." He finished.

"You're very intuitive, Espio. You should have known that I was being truthful anyway." I pointed out. He nodded.

"Perhaps."

"So… now what?" Nocturne finally spoke. "We still need a job and a place to live."

"If you were to stay and work here, things wouldn't be easy. We struggle with bills and stuff with it being just the three of us, not to mention that we barely have the room." Vector made a good point; we both knew that simply making the rent was hard enough, just like it was at home.

"We can prove ourselves." I said feeling confident. Nocturne again wasn't sure, but Charmy at least was on my side.

"Please let 'em stay, Vec! Please! Please! Please!" The bee begged causing Vector to rub his head.

"Tell ya what; if you can keep him preoccupied, then we'll give ya a shot." Nocturne looked at me with yet more worry. We both hated little kids, it was quite a problem when you've got young nieces and a nephew, but I was determined to make this work, even if Nocturne wasn't 100%. Plus, the fact that I liked Charmy anyway was a bonus.

"No problem." I smiled and Vector shook both our hands.

"Welcome aboard."


	3. First Time on the Job

**Hey all! How're you doing this week? I've actually been somewhat productive and began some artwork for this. It's nothing huge, since I don't have the best resources, but it's something, right?**

**No major news, as per usual, so I'll leave you to it.**

**Have a good weekend!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It was now late in the evening, thanks to Vector being the only one with a watch. Both Nocturne and I had to sleep on the couch, which neither of us minded since there were two of them. Espio had already gone up to his room, while the rest of us were downstairs finishing a large pizza. I was overwhelmingly content with how at home I felt despite only being there half a day. The atmosphere was incredibly pleasant as we watched some random movie on TV. It was an action movie without a doubt and we all had a bet going at who would die.

"As long as the dog lives, I'm happy." I told everyone. Nocturne nodded in agreement.

"I want the guy's wife to die." Nocturne suddenly added. I could see Charmy and Vector giving her a strange look, just as I was. "What? Then he wouldn't be tied down and have to risk his ass to save hers."

"Uh, she's not great with the whole 'relationship' thing." I quickly spoke up before things got weirder.

"That's cool." Charmy spoke. "No one in this house is anyway."

"Hey!" Vector interrupted.

"Ha! Yeah right!" The bee mocked. "How many girlfriends have you had?" We all turned to the blushing croc, who simply looked away in embarrassment. "Told ya." We all chuckled, except for Vector.

"Well, I think it's time for someone to go to bed." Vector announced with a smug grin.

"Aw, come on!" Charmy complained.

"Now, mister!" Vector argued. The kid huffed angrily before storming up to his room. "Now then, which of you two is going to tell him a bedtime story?" We both looked up at Vector with confusion. I assumed this was our first test to prove that we could handle the hyperactive 6 year-old. Knowing exactly what he meant, I got up and tugged on Nocturne's arm.

"Come on."

"I have to go to?" She whined.

"It'll be fun and good practise." I told her before we both headed into the boy's room that still had the light on.

His room was painted with black and yellow stripes to match his own colour and he had a dark green carpet. There was a small TV and games console in the corner. A little wooden desk was next to his bed with a wooden chair tucked underneath. Upon the desk, were many drawings that Charmy had done while others were placed on the walls. In the middle of the room, was a child's bed that had plain orange bed sheets. Charmy was already half under the covers with his arms crossed, mumbling words angrily to himself. The child looked surprised when he saw us both walk in.

"What're you guys doing in here?" He asked.

"Apparently you like to be told bedtime stories?" Nocturne questioned, which Charmy's constant nodding told us 'yes'.

"There are no books here though. Vector normally just makes them up." Charmy told us. I personally loved improvisation, despite being hit and miss with it. There was a second chair next to the bee's bed, which Nocturne sat in.

"Ok, this can't be too bad." She said to herself as she thought of a story. "Um… once upon a time, in a land of concrete towers, was a pigeon. This pigeon was very special because it was a white pigeon. One day, the pigeon flew freely, but it wasn't paying attention, so it flew into a window. The end." Charmy and I both started laughing. It wasn't all that funny; it was just that it came from absolutely nowhere.

"We're meant to be getting him to sleep, not hyping him up all over again." I told her after I had calmed down.

"Oh yeah… well, I tried alright? I never said I was any good." She said with a hint of annoyance in her voice. I gestured for her to move so I could sit down.

"I'll do it; you go and get some rest. It's been a long day." She agreed and said her goodnights before leaving the room.

"Alrighty then…" I began as it was now my turn to think of something. Charmy snuggled up in his bed sheets, which was, without a doubt, adorable. I ended up telling him a story about a big, strong bee known as the 'Honey Saviour'. By the grin on Charmy's face, he seemed to enjoy it. This bee would take on armies of hornets and wasps in order to return honey to the 'Bee Kingdom'. He was hailed throughout the land by the other bees and had a great deal of honour bestowed upon him. Before I knew it, I had finished the story with the hero bee saving the kingdom from the legendary 'Hornet Armada'. The only problem was, was that Charmy was still awake.

"That was so cool!"

"You're still awake?" I questioned. He nodded quickly.

"Yeah, Vector's stories are good and all, but he seems to not care after a little while and just wants to go to bed, so he rushes it and I just get bored and doze off." The bee explained. I was saddened more than anything to hear this, but also surprised how much a simple story meant to the 6 year-old.

"Vector means well, Charms. It's just that running a detective agency and looking after you don't tend to go hand in hand all the time. He works hard to give you a roof and take-out pizzas." Charmy smiled, I could tell that he understood what I meant, which led me to wonder if anyone had ever just sat down and talked to him like this. "Go easy on the croc from time to time, ok?"

"No problem!" Charmy smiled wide, which I couldn't help but do in return.

"Goodnight Charmy." I said softly before turning out his light. As I was about to leave, he suddenly called out to me.

"Arb, wait!" He whimpered with panic. "I'm umm… scared of the dark." The child announced. I was once again surprised.

"_You learn something new every day."_ I thought.

"Could you maybe just… stay here for a while? You don't have to tell me another story or anything." He compromised and despite it being very dark, I could already picture his wide, vulnerable eyes staring at me.

"Alright, I'll stay, but only of you go to sleep." I told him.

"Thanks!" He said a bit too loud, causing me to 'shush' him. "Goodnight Arby." He whispered.

"Goodnight." I repeated as I stayed sat in the chair next to him.

* * *

The next morning was bright and sunny just like the day before, but this was simply a disguise to the brutally cold air that accompanied it. I could feel someone gently nudging my shoulder in an attempt to wake me up. As much as I didn't want to, I opened my eyes to see that I was still in Charmy's room. I lifted my head from the arm it was resting on to see Nocturne giving me a strange look.

"Someone was tired." She commented with a grin. I yawned and stretched. My body ached from sleeping awkwardly in a wooden chair.

"I don't remember falling asleep." I replied. "What time is it?"

"Nine in the morning."

"…You woke me up… at nine in the fucking morning?" I whispered with a clear growl.

"Before you get all mad or whatever, Vector told me to get you up. Apparently this is when 'work' starts." I raised a brow at this.

"Have you done any work so far?"

"If eating toast and drinking tea is work then… yeah, plenty."

"Where's my tea?" Being woken up really didn't help my temper and a lack of hot drinks in my system only made it worse.

"Sheesh, take it easy. There's enough downstairs for you. Vector had to stop Charmy from devouring it all though, so you'd better hurry up." She gave me one more pat on the shoulder before returning downstairs. I stood up, much to the disagreement of my legs and followed her shortly afterwards. I shook myself awake and again jumped upon forgetting I had quills on the back of my head. I smirked at the thought before joining the others.

My first sight was Vector sat at his desk with a big mug of coffee next to him as he sorted through some paperwork. Charmy was watching the morning cartoons on TV with a slice of toast in his hand. I glanced to the lockers in the corner as I came down the stairs to notice Espio in his spot with his eyes closed yet again. Nocturne came out of the kitchen and handed me a mug. I smiled warmly to show that I was truly thankful for her making me some tea.

"Thanks."

"Perhaps that'll ease your temper." She remarked. I hit her playfully in the shoulder before sitting down next to Charmy. He smiled happily at me and I couldn't help but smile back.

"Hey Arb!" He greeted.

"Morning Charms." I replied with a nod before I took a gulp of tea. It felt like a hug as it went down and helped me a lot to shake the sleep off.

"Thanks for staying with me last night. I didn't want the monsters to get me." He explained. I could understand, I was the same when I was a kid, but as I grew older the darkness became more of a friend and less of an enemy.

"And thanks for not waking me up this morning." We both chuckled. "I'm also going to teach you that there are no monsters in the dark." The bee gave me an odd look.

"Y-you are?" He sounded nervous for reasons I wasn't sure of.

"Yeah, I'll show you that you have nothing to fear." I smiled again to try and comfort him and while he smiled back, I wasn't sure if he was fully convinced.

"Do we have any jobs today?" Nocturne spoke to Vector out of nowhere. I had to silently question why she was so keen. Maybe she was bored?

"Haven't had any calls or anything, so… nope." Vector replied. He didn't sound too concerned with the lack of jobs, but surely he was worried about the bills, right?

"Perhaps me and Arb could go around the city and look for jobs here and there for some extra cash." Now I was getting suspicious. She would normally be the first to turn down work if it ever came up. I wanted to trust her motive for trying to help the trio, but my instinct told me there was something else.

"But you guys have only been here a day." Vector added. "You don't know the city at all."

"I know the city! Can I go?! Can I?! Can I? Can I?" He squealed right in my ear. Vector again rubbed his head.

"Alright alright, Charmy, you go with them and show them around." Vector told him and he did a back flip in the air in response. With that, I downed what was left of my tea and followed the other two outside.

* * *

"_How odd."_ I thought. I knew it was a cold morning, but I could barely feel it. It then dawned on me that my fur was keeping me warm. I then looked to Nocturne, who didn't seem the slightest bit bothered by the low temperatures.

"Aren't you cold?" I asked. She shrugged her shoulders.

"No, why?" She asked in return.

"Just wondered. Since you're a reptile, I thought you'd feel the cold a lot more." She then nodded in agreement after thinking about it, but then began walking down the road. I shrugged it off and followed.

"So, what are we gonna do?" Charmy was the first to ask.

"Well, we could go find some work like Nocturne said unless that was just an excuse to get out of the house." I said whilst staring at her. The chameleon glanced at me with a slight glare.

"Ok, you're partially right." She admitted much to my surprise. "I did want to get out and start earning us some money, but I also wanted to talk to you, but since Charmy's here, that'll have to wait."

"What's up? I won't say anything! I swear!" The bee begged. Nocturne growled in annoyance.

"No way! You'll only go back and tell the other two."

"I don't think he will." I suddenly jumped in. Nocturne did not look happy in the slightest.

"Are you serious?"

"I don't think keeping secrets is a good way to start things off. We want them to trust us, don't we?" An irritated sigh escaped her.

"What is it with you and trust?"

"It's a big deal to me, alright?" I said sternly in order to stop the oncoming argument. "At least tell me what it was about." I tried to compromise and it seemed to work.

"It's about Espio." She said. Her serious expression told me that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

"What about him?" Charmy asked. With a sigh, she continued with her attention focused on me.

"I don't think he likes us."

"What? How do you know?" I questioned not wanting to believe it.

"When I left you in Charmy's room, I had to walk past his door in order to get downstairs. When I did, I heard him talking. I can only assume he was thinking out loud." I looked away. The next question I was about to ask, I really didn't want to know the answer to.

"What was he saying?" Now she looked away from me with a concerned look. Even Charmy remained silent with his face looking both curious and sad.

"In short…" She began. "…he was saying how we didn't belong here and that we should go back to where we came from." I stared at her not knowing what else to say. I couldn't understand. Did we do something wrong? I sat on the curb and rested my head on my arm. Charmy sat on my right, while Nocturne sat on my left.

"Why would he say that?" Charmy asked, obviously as shocked as I was.

"I was hoping you would know." Nocturne questioned in return. Charmy thought about it, but couldn't think of any obvious reason why.

"I have no idea. Did you make him mad?"

"Well, clearly the two of us simply being here made him mad so…" She trailed off and looked back at me. "Are you ok?"

"Perhaps it's just a one off." Nocturne tilted her head in suspicion.

"You heard what I said, right?" I nodded.

"Of course I did, but we can't just go around saying that he hates us. We've only been here a day. Maybe if we prove that we aren't useless, then maybe he'll change his opinion." Both Nocturne and Charmy grinned. Something about proving Espio wrong hit a chord in the pair.

"Alright, let's show that chameleon whose boss."


	4. Helping Hand

**Hello! Here is Chapter 4 all ready for you!**

**It's been four weeks already. I can't quite get my head around that. Maybe time is accelerating? I'm no scientist or anything, but the weeks are flying by, for me at least.**

**Nothing new on my end. I'll see you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

Another hour and a half had passed and we were in the chaos of a bustling city. Walking around was a pain with the many people that were going about their daily routine. The chill of the morning was no longer a problem now that we were in the city centre.

"This is crazy! How are we going to find any jobs when it's this busy?!" Nocturne yelled over the surrounding noise.

"Maybe we should find somewhere to sit and gather our thoughts! We obviously didn't think this through!" Charmy led us both to a public park, which ironically enough, was the one we were at yesterday. Perhaps it would grant us the same luck. We sat on the same bench at the top of the hill and wondered if we were really up to this. Nocturne could tell I was getting down and tried to lift my spirits.

"We'll be fine. Things always tend to look bleak before something comes along and changes everything. Even if we can't find anything today, we have tomorrow."

"We can't go back to Vector without having made any progress. I'll feel like I've let him down, whether you would feel the same, I don't know. I can already see Espio silently judging us as we walk through the door empty-handed."

"Now that you've brought it up, walking through the door with nothing would feel like total crap. Espio doesn't need any more ammunition than he's already got. We need something that will cast his ego down in flames." I turned to her slowly with a concerned look.

"I think the last thing we need is a war between you two. We agreed we would try and prove ourselves, remember?" She rolled her eyes at me and exhaled.

"Yeah yeah yeah, I know, but can't you just imagine his face if we were to walk in with like, 50 grand or something?" As exaggerated as it was, the image was priceless. Vector at his desk with his jaw on the floor and Espio failing to put together a sentence.

We were unexpectedly brought out of our thoughts when something floating above us caught our attention. It looked like some kind of metal sphere just hovering there with a red antenna on the underside. It took a second, but Charmy and I were the first to realise what it was.

"Isn't that-" I began, until I got cut off by Charmy.

"Moustache guy!" He yelled, which unfortunately sent plenty of people around us into a panic.

"No way!" Nocturne yelled with excitement. "I've always wanted to meet this guy!" I sent her an odd look. I had no idea that she liked Dr. Eggman at all, but now wasn't the time to think about that.

"You little rats won't get away this time!" He mocked from above. "Attacking in the middle of the day is perfect! There are lots of people and no one would suspect it!"

"Hey Eggman!" Nocturne suddenly shouted as she walked closer to the madman. He glared down at her, whilst Charmy and I watched his every move, in case he tried something. By now everyone else in the park had scattered and was watching the scene from a distance. "You are awesome!" The doctor was caught off-guard by the compliment, as were the rest of us.

"What is she doing?" Charmy asked. I searched my brain and soon realised her plan.

"It must be a distraction. Come on." I gestured for Charmy to follow me.

"What're we gonna do?"

"While he's focused on Nocturne, you're going to fly me up to Eggman from behind and I'll take care of it from there." Charmy nodded confidently and we both casually walked off while Eggman began boasting about his intelligence.

"I think it's about time someone recognised my genius! I have an I.Q. of 300, you know?" He went on. By now the media had flown in like buzzards and were filming the entire thing live. If I wasn't feeling the pressure before, I certainly was now. I had no idea what I was going to do once I was on board Eggman's hovercraft and I had no idea if I would even succeed in taking him down. All I could hope for was that the news crews wouldn't give us away.

It didn't take long for us to be level with him and my stomach had turned into a washing machine. My entire body was shivering as if I was freezing, but I was perfectly fine. The more I thought about it though, the more I realised how alive I felt. The rush of it all felt amazing and it pushed any fears I had aside.

"Ready?" Charmy whispered. With a few very deep breaths, I focused entirely on the villain in front of me.

"Alright… drop me!" I ordered and Charmy instantly let go of my hands. My first instinct was to go for his neck not just for an attack, but for the sake of my balance. His hovercraft wasn't stable at all and it began to lose control the moment I landed on it.

"Gah!" Eggman yelled in surprise as I wrapped an arm around his neck and began to choke him. "Get off of me, you pest!" He shouted in anger as he tried to free himself, but to both our surprise, I was too strong for him. He tried moving his hovercraft to try and get me off by force, but it was too unstable to control and it quickly began falling to the grass beneath us. I held on for dear life and Nocturne was forced to do an impressive dive to the side to avoid being hit. In a matter of seconds, the ground beneath us flew into the air as we collided with the earth. Police began rushing over as soon as it crashed, so that they could arrest the doctor, but he was quick to get up and run. I tried my best to get up and chase after him, but my vision had been blurred and I was dazed from the impact, meaning every attempt at getting up only ended in me collapsing back down. Out of nowhere, Eggman activated a hidden jetpack and flew off out of sight.

"_Dammit…"_ I cursed in my head. I knew I had failed and I felt as if I had let everyone down.

"Arby! Are you okay?!" A high-pitched voice shouted at me as Charmy rushed over to where I was. I tried to get up on my own and act like I was fine, but the bee helped, which I was secretly thankful for.

"I'm alright, Charms. No need to worry." I forced a smile to disguise my disappointment.

"That was quite the fall you took there." Nocturne walked up to me sounding ridiculously calm. "You okay?" I pushed any questions I had to the back of my mind.

"All good." I told her. We all began looking around in confusion when people suddenly started clapping and cheering.

"Are they clapping at us?" Nocturne whispered to me.

"I… think so?" I wasn't sure myself, but considering what had just happened, I could only guess that they were celebrating our act of heroism. I didn't even realise that I was smiling and that all the disappointment I had felt had been wiped from existence. Charmy was revelling in his glory and was waving to everyone. Suddenly, a reporter and cameraman came up to us and shook our hands.

"That was quite a spectacular display!" She told us. They were both human, the reporter was a tall woman with short, tied up brown hair who was wearing a dark, blue uniform. The cameraman behind her was a similar height and was wearing blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a red cap. "What made you do it?" She unexpectedly asked. I assumed she meant the whole 'crashing Eggman's hovercraft' bonanza.

"Uhh… I have no idea." I began honestly. "It was instinct. I felt as if I had to and my friends Charmy and Nocturne here helped." They both smiled at me when I looked to each of them.

"And what is your name?" She continued.

"Arby… the Hedgehog." I said with more pride than I had ever done in my entire life. I actually felt like a real person doing good and helping to make the world a better place. This was the first step into becoming the person I wanted to be and not becoming someone society forced me to be.

"Anything else you would like to say?" She asked to finish the very short interview. Nocturne jumped in to answer for me.

"Yeah, we all work at the Chaotix Detective Agency and we never turn down work that pays!" She had the smuggest grin on her face as she shamelessly promoted us and quoted Sonic Heroes all in one sentence.

"Chaotix rule!" Charmy yelled behind us.

"What they said." I told the reporter, who smiled warmly at me.

"Thank you for your time. Have a nice day." She finished before she and the cameraman walked away.

"You just had to, didn't you?" I said as I turned to the chameleon still grinning madly.

"It was a golden opportunity and I was not going to let it slip away." I nodded. Nocturne went on. "I cannot wait to see the look on that chameleon's face when we tell him about this." I rolled my eyes, but then looked down when I felt a tugging on my arm.

"Can we go now? I'm really hungry." Charmy complained. None of us had any idea what the time was and we knew it would take us a while to walk back, so we decided to go home.

"Nice one with that distraction by the way." I finally said to Nocturne before walking away with Charmy next to me. Nocturne looked in the direction Eggman had flown off in and stared for a few seconds.

"Yeah… distraction… sure." She whispered before snapping back to reality and catching up with us.

* * *

The walk home was enjoyable with the three of us talking about the events that unfolded. Charmy got tired on the way, so one of us had to carry him… that one of us being me. I didn't mind though, the little guy was cute. Nocturne went on about how she was going to put Espio in his place. The last thing I wanted was a fight, especially since we hadn't been here long.

"I wish you'd stop sticking up for him." She complained.

"I'm not, I'm just saying don't immediately assume that he hates us. We're strangers to him, yet we know his entire background. I'd be wary to." I explained and to my surprise she understood, but that didn't stop her from bragging about his ego that was going to take a nose dive.

We managed to find our way back after nearly getting lost twice, but thankfully Charmy was still awake to point us in the right direction. Nocturne went in first, whilst I followed behind. Upon looking around the room, we found that no one was here.

"Where is everybody?" Nocturne asked. I shrugged my shoulders before heading upstairs to put Charmy in his room. Whilst I was gone, Vector came out from the kitchen with a large sandwich that he had made himself for lunch.

"Nocturne!" He greeted so loud that I heard it from upstairs. After putting his sandwich down on his desk, he quickly went up to her and gave her several pats on the back, each of them nearly knocking her over.

"Hey Vec." She greeted in return. "What the hell is going on?"

"Oh! Espio and I saw you on TV earlier! You, Charms and Arby were awesome!" I heard Vector's praise and went a bright red as I came back down the stairs.

"Oh crap, you saw that?" I asked in an embarrassed panic.

"Of course! It was all over the news!" Vector was full of energy, which confused me more than anything. Was what we did really that big of a deal?

"I don't understand. We didn't even catch the guy."

"You tried, didn't you?" Vector continued. "I don't know what things are like where you came from, but here we appreciate things like that, regardless of whether they ended in success or failure." I blinked a few times and stayed silent. I just… couldn't grasp the idea. Many events of getting scolded for doing things 'wrong' flashed through my mind. I shuddered just thinking about them. "The fact that he got away isn't what you should be focusing on." Vector went on. "You should be proud of yourself, like I am of you for having the courage to go after a guy like that, despite only being here for a day."

'Proud'… The word itself seemed so unfamiliar to me, as if I hadn't heard the word before or just hadn't heard it enough. Did he just say that? He's kidding surely… no one ever means that… do they?

"You're… proud of me?" I had to ask out of sheer disbelief. Vector raised a brow in return.

"Of course I am! You look as if it's the strangest thing in the world."

"Well…" I tried to explain, but the words escaped me. I could see Nocturne whisper something to Vector, but I couldn't hear what was said. All of a sudden, Vector approached me and knelt down to my level. There was a clear smile on his face as he pulled me in for a hug. I was even more confused than I was before, but at the same time I was overwhelmingly grateful. How did he know I really needed a hug? Did Nocturne know? I didn't dwell on it and snuggled into Vector's arms as if it was an instinct. I wanted to fight the urge to breakdown in front of the other two, but this surge of emotion wouldn't allow me to just stay quiet. The croc's arms tightened around me as my small body shook.

"I don't know what things were like for you back there, but just know that the three of us care about the two of you." Vector said softly, which told me that he meant every word. I knew when he said 'three' he meant Espio as well, but I wasn't sure if he knew about the ninja's scepticism towards us.

"So, uh…" Nocturne began feeling a little awkward. "Where is the happy chameleon anyway?" Vector kept a hold of me as he answered.

"He went out about an hour before you guys got back. He didn't say where." The larger reptile explained. He then turned back to me as he let me go. "If you ever need anything, you've got us." He said, still with a smile.

"How can you be so friendly when you barely know us?" I asked whilst drying my tears with a tissue that Nocturne handed me.

"Because you haven't given us a reason not to be. Plus, I gather that you two are going to be with us for a while?" We both nodded. Since we had nowhere else to go and no portal back to Earth, the Chaotix was our home now. "Then you had better get used to us." Vector joked as he ruffled up the fur on my head.

* * *

The rest of the day was very peaceful and calm, the opposite to what that start of the day was like. Charmy had woken up and joined us two hours later, while Espio still hadn't returned home yet. The head honcho made the bee some honey on toast as a reward for his bravery with Eggman. Charmy of course, was very thankful and finished it in less than five minutes. Vector was writing down in a notepad of some kind, whilst Charmy and I watched TV. Nocturne meanwhile, was pretending to be a rainbow and flawlessly changed into any and every colour.

"Having fun?" I asked her.

"Absolutely." She grinned as she changed into the exact colour of Espio. "Hey Arby, who am I?" I didn't want to answer because I knew she would make a joke out of it, so instead I turned back to the TV. "Aww come on, you know who this is." She went on.

"Espio." I said flatly trying not to encourage anything, but she found a way around it, as usual.

"No, I'm grumpy."

"What's the difference?" Charmy suddenly said out of nowhere. They both burst into laughter whilst I tried to hold it back. Even Vector was grinning.

"Speaking or Mr. Pinky-" Nocturne began, but I cut her off.

"He's purple." I told her. She grunted in annoyance.

"Fine, whatever." She turned to Vector and spoke to him. "Vector, I was wondering…" The croc looked up from his work and gave her his full attention. "Would Espio have any reason to not like Arb and I?" Vector scratched his head and thought about it.

"I… don't think so. Why? Has he said anything to you?" Nocturne looked to me and I shook my head at her hoping that she would just keep quiet about it. I didn't want to drop Espio in shit if he didn't deserve it. Thankfully though, Nocturne got my hint.

"No, he's just been a bit quiet around us."

"Oh, he's always like that, don't worry about it." Vector reassured before putting his pen back on paper. She was quiet after that and went back to acting like a rainbow. Another half an hour had passed, before Charmy finally got bored with the TV.

"Hey Arb, wanna play video games with me?" I saw it as a perfectly normal question, while Vector saw it as an excuse to choke on his coffee.

"Are you serious?" Vector asked with surprise.

"Well yeah, why?"

"It's just that you've never let anyone in your room before, unless it's to read you a bedtime story."

"So?" I don't think Charmy fully understood what Vector was getting at, so he was quick to drop it.

* * *

I followed the 6 year-old into his room and sat on the floor next to him. There were two controllers, which were hooked up to a small black box. The TV was a small portable one, which reminded me of the one I had when I was a kid.

"So, what are we playing?" I asked.

"This." He said simply as he handed me a case with a disc in it. "There's this level I've been stuck on for ages, so I was hoping you could help me with it." The game was a sci-fi shooter, which was one of my favourite genres. I put the disc in and he set up a 2-player game on the level he mentioned. The beginning was fairly straightforward, with the basic infantry in a close-quarters environment until we made it outside, where there were enemy vehicles. "That tank over there always gets me." Charmy explained.

"What about these rockets?" I asked as I picked up a rocket launcher in the corner of the room.

"I've tried those, but it always dodges them." This tank wasn't any ordinary tank. It was more of a tank/hovercraft which could easily dodge projectiles, such as rockets. I looked around the area to see if there was any way to get around it and thankfully, found a partially hidden ladder behind some crates. It led to an upper level with a walkway, which was directly above the tank. "What're you gonna do?" Charmy asked me with curiosity. I grinned as I lined myself up with the part of the tank that the driver was sat in.

"You see, Charms…" I began, allowing my ego to fly through the roof. "…they always put a way to defeat these things. You just gotta find it." His eyes were fixed on the screen as I jumped from the platform I was on and hijacked the tank. I could see out of the corner of my eye the bee's jaw drop.

"Whoa!" He exclaimed. "That was awesome! How did you know to do that?!"

"I played a lot of these types of games at home; it was like an escape from the real world." I explained to him.

"Was the real world that bad?" His question caught me off-guard and I suddenly felt a lump in my throat.

"…It could be." I knew I had to be careful with my answer, I didn't want Charmy to go through the torture of existence I had, unless he wanted to of course, but he was too young to understand any of that yet.

"What was it like?" He continued to question. I didn't want to give the typical 'I'll tell you when you're older' answer; I wanted to be completely honest with him.

"In short, it was more hell than heaven." He looked confused, but then nodded, but I couldn't tell if he really understood what I had meant.

"Yeah, it was complete bullshit back there." We both turned to see Nocturne leaning in the doorway.

"Nocturne, for crying out loud!" I complained. "At least watch your language around the kid."

"Oh, come on, he's going to learn all this at some point." I knew she was right, but I didn't just want to thieve his innocence from him just because we we're so brutal.

"So, what's up? Got bored, did you?" I began hoping that she would also change the subject.

"I actually came to inform you that the smiling ninja is home." Sarcasm practically flooded from her mouth, which Charmy found more amusing than I did. I even wondered how many nicknames Nocturne could come up with for one guy.

"I wish you'd stop. You're making it seem so much worse than it actually is."

"Again, stop sticking up for him." She argued.

"I'm not." I told her once more before we all headed back downstairs. Just as Nocturne said, Espio was back and he was stood by Vector's desk.

"Hey Espio!" Charmy greeted happily to the chameleon.

"Hey Charmy." He replied, with not quite as much excitement.

"Espio!" Nocturne yelled from the top of the stairs clearly going for the same approach as Charmy. The difference was that she was going for a reaction rather than a reply. The ninja narrowed his eyes at her, but didn't really react at all.

"Nocturne." He said in his usual deep, but calming voice. Nocturne shrugged her shoulders and turned to me.

"I tried." She chuckled before going down to sit back on the couch. I followed behind her and tried to not greet him with as much excitement.

"Hey Espio." I said as casually as I could, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. After everything that Nocturne had told me, I felt like just talking to him would be my funeral. He reacted the same to me as he did to the other chameleon.

"Arby." He said plain and simple, yet it sent shivers through me. He had acknowledged my existence. That must've meant that I was making progress, right? Or he simply didn't care. I sat down and shrugged it off, but as I focused on the TV, I was completely unaware of the deadly glare that Espio was giving from behind me.


	5. Actions of the Mind

**Welcome back! It's Saturday once again and I have another chapter all ready for you! I hope your week has been good so far. Mine has been up and down... more down than up, but that's how my life usually is anyway. I've been doing some more art for this but there's only so much you can do when the only software you have is Paint :/**

**What's taken up most of my time was building the Space Colony ARK on my Minecraft world. It took about three days and looks awesome! Trying to get the dome shape right though was easily the hardest part since the game is all squares. Apart from that it has been all coursework, pressure from teachers and generally not feeling great. So yeah, I hope your week was better.**

**On the upside, this chapter was fun to write. Things are getting exciting but I won't spoil it for you. I'll let you read it and find out.**

**With that, have a nice weekend and I'll see you again next week! :)**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The evening was the same as the one before it. The atmosphere temporarily banished any problems we were having and we all relaxed in each other's company until everyone had gone to bed. I was again the one to read Charmy a story but I was really warming to it and even finding it fun.

I tried to sleep once I was under the covers on the couch but I couldn't. My mind wouldn't silence itself and Nocturne's wouldn't either.

"You still awake?" I asked her. She was on the couch opposite staring at the ceiling despite it being incredibly dark.

"Yup… are you?" I took a second to realise what she had just said and so did she. "Wait a sec…" I laughed quietly so that I wouldn't wake anyone up but Nocturne could still hear me. "Shut up." She whispered angrily. "I thought you would've been out like a light after today." I agreed with her. I thought I would've been exhausted but it seems my mind wasn't.

"Same, but I just keep thinking about this entire situation and not just what happened today." My thoughts were travelling to home and the people I had left behind. I wanted to stay strong but I did miss the familiarity of it all and even questioned myself as to whether or not I did the right thing. I explained my thoughts to Nocturne but she didn't have the same concerns. She didn't have an emotional bond with anyone because no one knew of her existence in my mind. I felt bad, I had just assumed she had shared my family but in truth… she had no one except me. She even went on to explain how having a physical body had suddenly put a huge weight on her. She wasn't used to the simple means of survival such as eating, drinking, hygiene and whatever else. I was born with all that stuff being mandatory but she wasn't which meant having to remember all this was hell for her.

"I didn't mean to go on like that and just put all of this on you but… I just needed to get it out." She finished after voicing her thoughts.

"No need to apologise, I understand venting… believe me. It's better to just get things out rather than bottle it up."

"Then why aren't you getting it out?" I gave a confused expression to her question despite her not seeing it.

"What are you talking about? I just told you what was on my mind." She sighed at me and sat up.

"I mean emotionally. You broke down with Vector today over his kindness but you haven't shown any homesickness, missing your family, your pets or anything and that's kind of worrying." She was wrong, I knew she was wrong. I may not have shown it but I could feel it. It was like a dagger through my ribcage and one hundred thousand pounds of pain on my shoulders and back. It was torture, slow and painful, doomed to end me in just a matter of time but I couldn't bring myself to show it. I hated the repetitive everyday life, I always had but the everyday things I had… a home, family, pets to care for, the very few friends… oh sweet chaos how I missed it all and now that Nocturne had brought it up… I couldn't get it out of my head.

"Nocturne…" I whimpered as tears escaped me. She instantly got up and came over to me, wrapping her arms around me just as Vector had.

"There you go." She whispered as she rubbed my back. "I knew you missed home really."

"But why do I hate myself for it?" She was silent at first probably to think of an answer.

"Because you'd feel like a complete hypocrite. You wanted to escape the life you had and now you want to go back." She was right just like she always was. Despite not being a voice in my head anymore, she knew me better than anyone else because she had been there my entire life and had gotten to know every aspect of me. "But you're not a hypocrite." She went on. "It's not the life you want to go back to; it's the things you held on to within your life that you wish to return to." Was she right? I couldn't think. The thought of not being in a familiar world was practically unbearable. I wept loudly and was genuinely surprised that no one had been woken up by my cries. Nocturne remained by my side as my mind screamed.

My eyes stung as they slowly opened. I blinked a few times before looking around. Nocturne was asleep back on her couch. I could barely remember what happened the night before and I could only assume that I had cried myself to sleep. Upon looking out the window, I could see the sky was just lighting up, it must have been early in the morning, before 9am I was certain. I got up anyway knowing that I wouldn't get back to sleep now that my thoughts were waking up. I felt more guilt tear its way through me so I went outside to watch the sunrise in a hope of distracting myself.

I couldn't see much from the front door step but I appreciated the view I did have from behind the city skyline. The dark blues and purples of the night were gently fading into pale pinks and oranges which would then signal that the morning had arrived. Small, white clouds dotted the sky which would cast many shadows upon the land as they passed over. I exhaled in serenity at the morning's grace but like everything else, it had to come to an end. My endless daydreams were interrupted by a grunt from behind me. I jumped up and looked around in surprise but no one was there. The grunt repeated itself and this time my eyes travelled upwards until they were fixed upon a purple chameleon sat on the Chaotix roof. His expression was stern and not welcoming in the slightest but I fought to not let it intimidate me.

"Morning." I said calmly with a small nod. He didn't return my greeting and instead asked me a question.

"What are you doing out here?" His voice showed no sign of what he may have been feeling, like a silhouette within a forest.

"I came out to watch the sunrise." I answered honestly. I wanted to ask him the same but didn't want to seem intrusive.

"I'm surprised someone like you would appreciate the everyday things." The way he said it sounded insulting as if he thought I was incapable of appreciating the world around me.

"What's that supposed to mean?" His stern expression didn't change but his voice seemed to become colder.

"Forget about it, you always do." He jumped down from the roof and glared at me as he walked past and through the front door. As he entered the house, Nocturne was just leaving to join me outside. He focused his glare upon her while she smirked at him without a care. It only lasted for a moment and Espio soon walked off as Nocturne stood next to me and closed the door.

"Sheesh, who the hell pulled on his tail this morning?" She asked me with a chuckle. I exhaled and shrugged my shoulders.

"I thought he would at least be civil with us now after yesterday. Vector did say that he saw the whole thing on TV." I reminded her and she nodded in agreement.

"Maybe he's jealous." She suggested but I wasn't convinced.

"Jealous of what? He's a master ninja with no depression holding him back."

"We don't know that." Nocturne argued. She had a point but he was impossible to read so I couldn't be sure. "Perhaps he's jealous that we don't have our own horn stuck up our asses."

"Funny coming from someone who has four." I pointed out.

"Zip it." She said with a grin. I forced a smile but the situation with Espio still bothered me. "Sleep ok?" She asked remembering the night before.

"Slept fine. Still feel guilty though." I told her.

"That's normal. We just need to take your mind off of it. Maybe some toast?" I shook my head. I wasn't hungry in the slightest. "Cup of tea?" That caught my attention and I nodded at her with a smile. With that, she went back inside leaving me alone. I thought about what Espio had said to me and continued to figure out what he meant. I couldn't come to a solid conclusion though.

"_There's no way he knows me well enough to be able to judge my character unless he judges on first impressions alone."_ The more I tried to get into his head, the more frustrated I became. I eventually decided that dwelling on the subject wasn't necessary and went back inside where it was warmer. Thankfully, Espio was nowhere in the room while Nocturne was sat on the couch she had slept on. What she was doing however was definitely not what I had expected. There was a pile of toast on Vector's desk and instead of getting up and grabbing a piece like any normal person; she was using her chameleon tongue as a slingshot to bring a piece towards her without having to leave her spot.

"What the actual fuck?" I mumbled in disbelief. She turned to me with a piece of toast hanging from her mouth and finished it before talking.

"You like my new trick?" I was completely lost for words and simply nodded before sitting opposite her and picking up my mug that was placed on the table.

"No one else up yet?" I asked.

"Nope, enjoy the quiet while you can." She chuckled once more before 'getting' another piece of toast.

"Nice shot." I complimented and heard a faint 'thank you' behind her mouth full of toast.

A couple more hours had passed and I had managed to get some more sleep before the final two had gotten up. Vector was up first and Nocturne had to wake Charmy so that we could all be downstairs, apparently the big boss had a job for us. The croc took a big gulp of coffee before detailing the mission to us. I couldn't help but feel like I was in the military, I had never had a mission briefed to me before and I liked the feeling. I felt as if I had a purpose despite my troubles.

"Looks like your little stunt yesterday did the trick. I got a call earlier this morning from the owner of the central museum. Apparently one of the Chaos Emeralds that were being housed there was stolen." The green reptile explained.

"Any idea who it was?" Nocturne asked.

"No clues so far but they think whoever took the first will come back tonight for the second one that is also being kept there."

"I'm guessing they want us there to stop whoever it is when they do show up." Nocturne went on. Vector nodded.

"How are we gonna do that?" Charmy questioned not looking too confident.

"I'm glad you asked." A wide toothy grin was plastered on his face as he explained to each of us what our role was on this mission. I couldn't help but smile at how much faith he had in us.

Vector was going to be on comms so that we could all communicate while the remaining four were to be split into two pairs. Charmy and I would be one pair whilst Espio and Nocturne would be the other. I glanced at her with a concerned look but she was too busy grinning smugly at Espio who was glaring at her in return. Vector obviously had no idea what was going on. The two chameleons would be stationed in the room with the Chaos Emerald and it would be them to stop the thief whilst Charmy and I were on scout patrol so that we could warn the other two of when the thief was coming and where from.

The rest of the day was spent planning for different scenarios in case something went wrong. Vector had a map of the museum which we all studied carefully since we wouldn't have it with us while the mission was going on. Charmy decided to cover the front entrance and the main lobby while I took the two entrances at the back. One was just a basic back door while there was a secret underground entrance in the basement but the only way out of there is in a room next to the main back door making it easy to keep an eye on. Vector would stay in the security room where he could watch all the security cameras.

We had about an hour of quiet time before we needed to head out so I took this opportunity to have a quick word with Nocturne.

"I know what you're thinking." I began with a stern voice.

"What? No you don't." She shrugged it off and tried to walk away but I quickly caught her off-guard.

"You're going to push his buttons like there's no tomorrow." I stated bluntly.

"... Ok maybe you do." She admitted. "Look, I can't stand him ok? He only thinks about himself and doesn't care about how anyone else feels and yes, that includes you to."

"I wish you'd stop with all this. It's only making the situation worse and besides he hasn't even done anything. A few glares and dodgy comments aren't hurting us."

"Perhaps not right now." She argued. "But they will eventually lead to something and that scares me believe it or not." I raised a brow not understanding where her fears were coming from.

"Why are you scared?"

"Because you are the vulnerable one in all this. You want to see the good that you saw in the game, comic and TV versions of him. But the truth is…" She paused and looked me right in the eyes. Her expression whilst stubborn seemed sad. "He's not the Espio that Earth portrayed him out to be. This guy is brutal and will take advantage of your admiration for him. Before you know it, you'll be wrapped around his little finger and he won't hesitate to hurt you. Then what are you going to do?" Hearing all these words saddened me greatly. I couldn't think of an answer and just looked to the ground.

"Nocturne… just stop ok?" I begged quietly. "We have a mission to get ready for so I think we should focus on it." I really didn't want to talk about it anymore; I had enough crazy thoughts filling my head as it was. She nodded and walked off to re-join the others. I followed a few minutes later.

_Later that night…_

We had all been in position for a few hours now and the eeriness of the night had settled in. The only light I had was a streetlight that shone in from outside. I was hidden in a corner behind one of the exhibits keeping my eyes firmly locked on the two doors in front of me. Charmy was hidden by the front entrance and judging by the silence on the comms, everything was fine.

"_He hates you…"_

"Huh?" I perked up hearing someone's voice but upon looking around, no one was there. "Did any of you talk just now?" I whispered down my walkie talkie but everyone confirmed that they were quiet and had been for a while. I quivered in my corner and began to think.

"_None of them care."_

My eyes widened. I knew what was happening and it was the worst time for it to happen. My deepest and darkest thoughts had become voices and were beginning to torment me. The last time this happened was before we came here and I had nearly forgotten about it. I had no idea why this kept happening to me but it was out of my control and would always overwhelm me until I was screaming on my knees. My breathing quickened but I tried my hardest to focus on the job at hand.

"_You are alone."_

Meanwhile, Espio and Nocturne were sat on the ceiling keeping both their eyes on the Chaos Emerald. The ninja was completely invisible whilst Nocturne had to match the colour of the wall behind her. She may not have been invisible but she was indeed very hard to notice. Espio was trying his best to forget Nocturne existed but she was far more stubborn than that.

"What is your problem pinky?" She whispered with annoyance but she got no answer, not even a glance. "Did we do something to you?" Again, no response. "Hey! Jackass!"

"Focus!" He finally growled at her but she only shook her head in frustration.

"For fuck sake, I'm trying to get through to you and you don't even give a shit!" Nocturne gave up after that, knowing her efforts would only be wasted on him.

"Guys, I hear something in the ceiling." Charmy spoke over the comms. The two reptiles studied the ceiling of the room only to notice two possible entrances through the ventilation system.

"Typical." Nocturne mumbled to herself. Espio moved near one end while Nocturne moved to the other. It wasn't long before they could hear the same noises that Charmy had mentioned only minutes before. Suddenly, the vent closest to Nocturne began to open. She readied herself and to her surprise, a bat head popped out and began looking around, obviously checking if it was all clear. It didn't take long for her to notice Nocturne. The reptile grinned sadistically as she stared at the white bat. "Boo." She whispered before grabbing the bat by the neck and forcing her to the ground. The room was tall and had a solid marble floor making the landing particularly painful.

"Ow!" The bat yelped. "That's no way to treat a lady!" She complained. Nocturne rolled her eyes as she effortlessly pinned the bat stomach down with one hand on the back of her neck.

"Bitch please, if you were a true 'lady' then you would be sipping tea and kissing ass to those in charge." She paused and moved closer to her ear. "Besides, we all know you like an exciting life Rouge."

"How the…" Rouge trailed off not knowing how this strange chameleon knew her name. Before she could say any more, Nocturne got distracted by something else dropping from the vent above. As she looked up, she was greeted with a hard kick to the face. Espio watched as the entire thing unfolded before his eyes and decided that now was the time to act. He threw a shuriken at the newcomer's shoulder and it dug deep into the flesh.

"Fuck!" He yelled in pain as the star caused blood to trickle down his arm. He studied the star and a cold glare was soon apparent on his face. "Show yourself Espio!" He shouted somewhere towards the ceiling.

"Whoa!" Nocturne gasped in disbelief as she clutched her face. "You're Shadow!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"How do you know my name?" He asked out of sheer confusion which Espio saw as an opportunity. He armed a bomb shuriken and threw it near Shadow's foot. The hedgehog questioned how a top ninja could miss when he was stood still but soon realised his true intentions. "Move!" He yelled and the three of them dodged the blast.

"That chameleon knows my name as well." Rouge explained quickly to Shadow which only puzzled him further.

"Forget about it!" He demanded. "Let just get the emerald and go!"

"If only it were that easy." Shadow quickly looked around trying to see any sign of the purple reptile. Suddenly, the black mammal felt a sharp pain to his lower back and his knees collapsed.

"Ah!" He hissed as Espio became visible behind him but to his surprise, the hedgehog suddenly vanished.

"Well, back to it I guess." Nocturne said to herself before pinning Rouge to the ground once again and repeatedly punching her in the face. Shadow instantly reappeared behind Espio and wrapped an arm around his neck. With his free arm, he pulled out a hand gun and pointed it to the ninja's head. Nocturne froze at the sight which allowed Rouge to punch her in return and get out of her grasp.

"One wrong move chameleon and your friend gets it." Shadow threatened.

"I wouldn't call him my '_friend_'." She muttered much to the shock and anger of the others. "If it were any other circumstance then I would just let you shoot the bastard."

"WHAT!?" Espio shouted angrily at her but this only caused Shadow's grip on him to tighten.

"Well aren't you a heartless one." Rouge seductively said with a grin which Nocturne returned. The bat circled her teasingly while the black and red chameleon simply smirked at the attention.

"Bullshit." Shadow added. "If you were really that heartless then why are you with the Chaotix?"

"That's a good point Shadow." Nocturne began. "I don't mind the Chaotix, it's just him." Her expression quickly turned from friendly to deadly as she focused her stare towards Espio.

"What did he do?" Rouge asked playfully making it obvious that she was curious. "Was he too rough with you?" Shadow gave the bat a strange look whilst Espio seemed like he was about to explode into an uncontrollable rage. Nocturne on the other hand remained serious.

"Not with me but with someone else I care about."

"I haven't done anything!" Espio growled.

"But you will! I've seen this sort of behaviour before!" She yelled back at him. "Do you have any idea how much Arby admires you? Do you even care? She would probably take a bullet for you when in reality you would just throw her towards the gun!" Nocturne continued her verbal warpath whilst Shadow and Rouge exchanged concerned looks. "I care for very little and for the most part, I would rather watch the world go down in flames but if there is one thing that causes my blood to boil then it is my sister being hurt. The only reason I'm not abandoning you to have your brains thrown against the wall is because Arby would be devastated but you don't care about that do you? As long as you live to see another day then nothing else matters!" A long silence lasted for several minutes once Nocturne had finished. Everyone was thinking about what Nocturne had just said even Arby, Charmy and Vector who heard the entire thing over the comms.

Suddenly, sirens could be heard from outside which Shadow and Rouge took as a good time to leave. Rouge quickly flew back up into the vents whilst Shadow said one last thing.

"You win this time chameleon, but we will meet again." His voice was deep and calm as if nothing had happened.

"It's Nocturne by the way and I hope we do." She replied with a grin but before he Chaos Controlled away, she thought she saw him grin in return.


	6. Underlying Hatred

**It's Saturday again! I'd be hyped up about it but it's been a tough week. I have a job now as well as college so you can only imagine what it's like. Let me tell you this, life is hard. There is no way around that and it sucks. So because of this, chapters may be up a little later but they will still be up on Saturday. I got lucky today, I had the day off but I needed the sleep and I mean _really_ needed it.**

**Anyway, enough of being boring. Fan fiction is the only 'exciting' part of my life now. That and when the snake tries to attack me... but I'd rather call that terrifying than anything else.**

**Ok before I get distracted again, here's chapter 6 all ready for you!**

**Also I'd like to give a big thanks to Electro DGX for your continued support! I really appreciate it and I'll be sure to keep it up!**

**With that being said, I hope you all enjoy and I'll see you again next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It was early the next morning and we were all awake. I was sat on the floor in the corner with my knees up to my chest. Charmy was sat next to me doing the same thing and Espio was by the lockers. He would glance at the two of us every now and then which made me paranoid. I couldn't help but think that he was planning to kill me. Vector and Nocturne were in the croc's room. He had called her in there about ten minutes prior and now all we could hear was yelling from both of them. It was clear that the boss wasn't happy with Nocturne's actions from the night before and he had good reason. Despite getting the job done, she had nearly gotten Espio killed and that was reason enough to be pissed. It went deathly quiet for a few minutes and I thought that one of them had killed the other. Suddenly, Vector's bedroom door opened and Nocturne was the first to walk out. I raised a brow when I saw her grinning to herself. Vector walked out soon after shaking his head in disapproval.

"That was fun." Nocturne stated causing me to sigh in frustration.

"How on Mobius was that fun?" I asked her in a quiet voice.

"The thrill of the fight you know? I actually feel alive." Charmy and I glanced at each other with the oddest looks.

"You have problems." I stated dryly.

"And you don't?" She returned successfully silencing me as I remembered back to last night. She knelt down and smiled at me. "Try not to worry about it. You haven't had an 'episode' since we got here. It may have been a one off." I wasn't so sure. I remember all four of them finding me rocking back and forth in the corner where I was stationed. Nocturne instantly knew what was happening and rushed to comfort me from my voices while the other three were clueless.

"Anyway…" Vector said from nowhere. "Let's lighten the mood shall we?" The rest of us weren't sure what he was going on about but he soon explained. "Despite everything that happened we did do our job and stop the emerald from being stolen. Not only that, but we also discovered the identity of the thieves so now the cops know who they're up against. As a result, our pay was bumped up a bit."

"Yay!" Charmy yelled making both Nocturne and I jump. "How much did we get?!"

"2000 rings in total." Vector announced proudly. We all gasped in unison. We went from broke to loaded in 24 hours.

"What are we gonna do with all that?!" Charmy asked with anticipation.

"Take it easy Charms; I need to split it between us. Now I hope you two understand that I need the biggest cut in order to pay our overdue bills." Vector aimed at me and Nocturne.

"Of course, no problem." I said, completely understanding of the situation.

"But even with that…" Vector went on as he worked out our split. "How does 300 rings sound?" I almost fainted at the thought. 300 rings?! I've never had that much cash in my entire life.

"Holy shit…" Nocturne said to herself. Espio didn't say anything as usual; he just nodded while Charmy was dancing in mid-air. Vector then proceeded to pay each of us which thankfully lifted the mood a lot from before.

"How about we all go out and celebrate?" I suggested trying to get into the good mood that everyone else had.

"That's a great idea Arb!" Vector praised. "But I've got to pay all our bills before we get kicked out. Perhaps the rest of you can do something."

"Pizza party?" Nocturne said to Charmy and me.

"At 10:30am?" I questioned her.

"Hell yeah! Come on Arb, live a little." She nudged me in the shoulder.

"It'll be fun Arb!" Charmy tried to convince me, which of course worked.

"Alright, let's go." I smiled and they both glided out the door. Before I left, I looked at Espio half-hoping that he would come with us. He looked back at me as if he knew what I was thinking.

"I'll pass." He said in his usual deep voice. I couldn't tell if he still disliked me which bothered me a little. Either way I nodded and followed the other pair out the door.

Once we had left, Vector focused his attention on Espio who was now back in his corner next to the lockers.

"I need to talk to you to." Espio opened his eyes and breathed deeply before approaching Vector's desk.

"What is it?" The chameleon asked.

"What is going on with you and Nocturne?" Espio was slightly surprised by how he had just shot to the point, it was clear that's the croc's mood wasn't all that great.

"It's nothing." He lied and Vector knew it.

"Don't lie to me Espio! I want an explanation… now." The larger reptile demanded.

"We hate each other! Happy now?" Espio suddenly snapped. The chameleon was usually the most patient out of all of them so Vector knew that this had been going on for a while.

"How? They've only been here a couple of days." Vector asked.

"It doesn't matter."

"Espio, you were nearly shot because of all this so I think it does matter. We are never going to get to the bottom of this and figure things out unless you start talking." Espio was getting more irritated by the fact that he was literally being interrogated by his own boss. Why should he talk? He wasn't the one to threaten a life. The ninja chose to stay silent. "If this is what I think this is then we're going to have a problem here."

"What do you think this is?" Espio asked wondering what was lurking in the croc's mind.

"I'm just gonna come out and say it." Vector took a deep breath. "It's because they're technically human, right?" Espio froze, not realising that the croc had remembered him talking about it all that time ago.

"I'm surprised you remember that." The purple reptile admitted.

"You're my best friend Es. Of course I remember that." He smiled but quickly looked worried. "You know they're not human anymore."

"They were originally and they have been raised around them. They only wish to control everything, and those they cannot control they will destroy. Nocturne makes that more obvious than Arby but you and I have both seen her psychotic tendencies. She will break at some point."

"You don't know that!" Vector snapped at him. "Look, I can understand somewhat where you're coming from, especially with Nocturne but Arby has done nothing but try to help us since she got here. Can't you at least give her a chance? She could be different from the others." Vector tried to reason with him but it was no use.

"No human is different Vector! They all have a deadly thirst for war, so much that they will happily kill each other! They are a selfish, sickening race and I want nothing to do with them!" The two glared at each other and neither said a word a few moments.

"That's kinda ironic coming from a ninja who was a part of the Clan Wars." Vector pointed out, hitting a nerve in Espio.

"I only kill when absolutely necessary and we had to fight for self-survival! We would have been wiped out by the other three clans otherwise!" He slammed his fist down on Vector's desk and glared at him straight in the eyes. "You and I both know what humans are capable of. Do you not remember what Eggman did to Charmy and his home?" Vector's jaw dropped; surprised that Espio had brought that up at all.

"I'll admit that what that bastard did was and still is unforgivable but not all of humanity is like that!"

"Yes they are!" Espio shook his head and began walking towards the door. "When they betray us and they will betray us, then perhaps you'll finally listen to me!" He stormed out and slammed the door behind him, leaving Vector alone to think about the entire situation.

The whole day seemed to fly by with nothing extreme happening. We ventured the city so much that we were quickly learning our way around. We went everywhere from shopping centres to cafes and ice cream parlours. Our last stop before we headed back to the Chaotix was a local pizza place. We each got a pizza and a separate pizza cookie along with soda drinks. Once we finally got back, our first sight was Vector lying on the couch with one large hand covering his eyes.

"Hey Vec, you alright?" I asked as I sat down next to him while Nocturne and Charmy put everything on the table.

"Yeah, just a really bad headache." He told me.

"We got ya pizza." Charmy said quietly in order to not make the croc's headache any worse.

"You guys didn't have to do that." Vector said with a smile.

"Well this morning was pretty crappy so we all thought you could use a bit of cheering up." Nocturne said returning the smile. Vector was very grateful and sat up but his expression quickly changed.

"Is something wrong?" I questioned.

"I'll talk to you about it later but for now, pizza sounds great." We all shrugged it off and tucked into our pizzas. The night was filled with conversation about what we all did during the day. We even told a few stories about Earth and what it was like back there. While the race that inhabited the planet was far from perfect, the environments it housed were breath-taking. I explained about a cliff that two of my old friends and I would climb occasionally during the summer. Once we were at the top, we were rewarded with the canopy of many trees to our right, glistening, blue ocean to our left and the bay and harbour in front of us. We would stay there with snacks and drinks until after the sun had set before heading home. That story was apparently enough to send Charmy to sleep. He must've been tired from walking/flying around all day. I carefully carried him to his room and put him to bed before coming back down and re-joining the other two.

"So Vector…" Nocturne began as I sat back down. "Didn't you have something you wanted to talk to us about?"

"Yes I did, I just didn't want to say anything in front of Charmy." Vector replied.

"Well he's asleep now." I told him. "What's up?" He had a concerned look on his face as he glanced back and forth at each of us.

"I might know why Espio has been acting hostile towards the both of you."

"Finally we have a reason." Nocturne spoke up. "I knew there was something causing it."

"Why?" I asked with a saddened voice.

"Because you were human." He said bluntly. I froze in shock not knowing what to think or say while Nocturne just got angry.

"What?! Because we _were_ human?! We're not human anymore!"

"That's what I said but he's pretty adamant about it." Vector told her.

"That's ridiculous!"

"Actually… it makes a lot of sense." I began.

"How?" Nocturne asked me.

"Think about it, we're no fans of the human race either and we were born into it. Espio only knows one human being and that is…" I gestured to Nocturne to finish the sentence. Her eyes widened when she realised.

"…Eggman." She eventually answered.

"Exactly, because of him, he's going to believe that the entirety of humanity is like him which… is pretty accurate." Vector looked at me still with the same concerned expression.

"So, he's right?"

"I don't know if humanity is any different here but back on Earth the vast majority were fucked up. Not all of them but most." I explained.

"Yeah, people would start wars over the stupidest things and slaughter other people and animals for money. Humanity is a twisted race and I can only hope that we plunge ourselves into self-destruction." Nocturne added. Vector sat back and took several deep breaths at what he had heard. He was speechless, we all were. Without saying anything, I got up and headed for the door.

"Where ya going?" Vector asked just as I was about to leave.

"Just for a walk, I won't be long."

"Alright stay safe out there and take it easy alright?" He had a warm smile as he said it which made me feel a lot better.

I shut the door behind me as I left and wondered where to go. I didn't feel safe enough going back into the city and decided to venture down a path behind me which disappeared into the woods behind the house. I thought more about what was going on and couldn't think of any way to solve it. I wanted to get along with Espio even if Nocturne didn't but at the same time he had every right to hate us. We were human even if we didn't look it right now which meant we were just as corrupted right? I was quickly brought out of my thoughts when the footpath disappeared and became grass. I looked up to see an endless field of flowers being illuminated by the moon.

"Wow…" I whispered in complete awe. Many colours ranging from red, yellow, blue, purple and white all stood before me. It was simply beautiful. This secret haven was far enough away from the city that it was actually peaceful and quiet. As I went further into the centre of the field, I thought I saw some flowers moving in the distance but I assumed it was either my eyes playing tricks on me or just the wind. I found the highest point and sat with the glow of the city behind me. Thousands of stars existed above with the moon being comfortable amongst them. "This place is gorgeous." I thought out loud. My eyes travelled aimlessly through the night sky trying to make out patterns. Soon however, my darker thoughts came back to me and I was forced to think about them. My guilt over leaving home, my guilt over letting the team down the night before, my guilt over being born into a race I had no choice in. I was feeling guilty for everything, even things that were out of my control and I felt as if everything bad that was happening was because of me. "I'm sorry…" I spoke again as my voice trembled. Tears slowly made their way down but I acted as if they weren't there. "Perhaps he's right. Maybe we just don't belong here. There's no place for us…" I hesitated. "No one needs us." I sniffed and covered my face with my hands. "What use am I anyway? I only bring pain to myself and others." I went on feeling a tiny bit of relief with each thought that travelled through my lips.

I had no idea how much time had passed but the moon was now high in the sky casting its glow upon the land around me. I was silent, doing nothing but listen to the gentle breeze that would cause my body to shiver. I thought about going back, knowing that the other two would be worried if I was out for too long but my mind wanted to stick around just that little bit longer. As I paid attention to the noises around me, I zoned in on a faint rustling sound. It was as if someone was moving through the grass and flowers. I turned suddenly, hoping to catch whoever it was off-guard but I soon relaxed when I saw no one there. Fearing that the voices would go into another episode after being startled, I got up and headed back.

Upon re-entering the Chaotix, the first thing I noticed was the room being pitch black with no one around. I could only assume that everyone had gone to bed. I closed the door behind me trying to be as quiet as I could and rested my body on the couch but I wasn't tired. My eyes stared at the ceiling whilst many thoughts continued to run through my head. Before I knew it, I finally passed out without realising.

My entire body jolted to life as if I had been struck by lightning. I glanced around in shock to notice that there was nothing. Everything around me was a plain white. There were no objects, people or anything. I got up and watched my feet as I walked. It seemed as if I was walking on nothing. I thought that I was dead until something began to appear next to me. Within about 10 seconds, Nocturne had formed from nothing and was stood with a sinister grin.

"Been a while huh Arb?" She was completely calm while I had no idea what was going on.

"What?" Was the only word I could muster.

"Oh right…" She went on. "You're dreaming by the way so don't start thinking you died or something."

"_How did she know I was thinking that?"_ I wondered.

"As a result of us being from the same mind, I can show up in your dreams as much as I please." She explained. I couldn't help but feel violated. What I dreamt about was out of my control and the thought of Nocturne being able to pop up at any point made me uncomfortable.

"Is this a new power you gained?" I asked.

"Well… no. I've been able to do this for as long as I can remember." She admitted, making me feel even less comfortable. "I didn't think I could still do this though." She said in an attempt to make me feel better… it didn't.

"I see you're still wearing that ring." I pointed out. The ring I was referring to was a large, metal cart wheel which clung tightly around her neck.

"I warmed to it believe it or not. Besides it kept me under control whilst in that little messed up head of yours." She explained as if I didn't already know. The difference now was that she was still in her Mobian form just as I was.

"So…" I began, hoping to change the subject. "Why is it so blank here?"

"Oh!" She jumped up. "That's because we're in your imagination and you haven't thought of anything. I can do it to, watch." All of a sudden, Shadow emerged from nowhere just as she had and stood next to her. "See? Now you try it." I tried thinking about Espio like I used to when I was a kid. I forgot about the current situation and convinced myself that we were friends. I turned to suddenly see him stood there. He looked at me and smiled. I smiled back at him before looking back at Nocturne who still had an incredibly smug grin plastered on her. She approached me and leaned her arm on my shoulder whilst looking at Espio.

"You just wanna be pals, don't you?" To my surprise, her voice sounded sad as she said this. I nodded before answering.

"Yeah… it's not like I had any choice in being born into the human race."

"None of us have a choice whatsoever." Nocturne added. "In a creepy way, our parents decide our fate. We don't have any say in being conceived or being born or growing up. We are all forced into an existence with some getting off lighter than others." We both began to walk with Espio and Shadow walking beside us. With everything that we were talking about, I took a quick flashback through my life and I could only remember alcohol, violence and death.

"Shame we weren't that 'some'." I finished. Nocturne shrugged her shoulders not knowing what else to say.

"Happiness lies trapped to misery." She commented out of nowhere and I repeated her words many times under my breath knowing that I had heard them from somewhere, I just couldn't remember exactly where from.

"Then why is it that I feel so much pain and can't feel happiness?" I questioned her. We had both stopped walking and she was now staring at me with a concerned look.

"What are you talking about? You've felt happiness before." She paused and thought for a second. "Right?"

"I know how to act happy." I told her as I smiled but then my expression became one of extreme sadness. "I just… can't feel it." Her mouth opened a little after hearing my words. Without warning, Shadow and Espio vanished instantly.

"Did you do that?" Nocturne asked. I shook my head and looked around clueless. A sudden sharp pain tore through my head and sent me to my knees. Flames rose from the non-existent ground and surrounded me, stopping Nocturne from being able to reach me. A deafening boom echoed across the white space and faded into a gentle hum. Nocturne watched helplessly as I curled up and cried in fear.

"Arby don't listen to them! They aren't real!" She screamed but my senses were blocked and I couldn't hear anything outside of my won skull. My eyes were tightly closed and all I saw was myself screaming as the blaze effortlessly melted my skin and flesh. I clutched my head and shook uncontrollably but even with the immense torture, I did not once ask it to stop. I allowed it to happen so that I could feel something. This mental torment reminded me that I was alive but it also reminded me that this was all I could feel. If I dared to be happy, assuming I could, it would only be taken just as it had been many times before.

I felt the world around me start to shake but I still did not open my eyes. My ears twitched as I heard my name being called. In an instant, the image disappeared and my eyes opened to the Chaotix lounge where I slept. My breaths were fast and inconsistent as my pupils darted around the room. I thought I could see Vector's arms wrapped around me but it wasn't light enough to be sure. I looked across to the other couch to see Charmy sat there instead of Nocturne.

"Are you ok Arby?" He said with his voice filled with worry to match his expression. I simply nodded whilst for now being unable to talk, as if my nightmare had disarmed any basic functions.

"There, there…" A gentle voice comforted me. "It's alright. You're alright now." I turned my head upwards from where it rested to see that it really was Vector that was holding on to me. I wasn't sure why it surprised me so much, I guess I just assumed that it would be Nocturne there instead.

"Sorry… I woke you." I whispered weakly. It was too early for anyone to be up and I felt guilty for being the one to wake everybody else.

"Hey, no need to apologise." He said warmly. "As long as you're ok that's all that matters." He smiled and Charmy did the same as he gave me a thumbs up. I finally sat up and gave Vector a proper hug which he happily returned. I probably would've broken down again if I wasn't so emotionally numb from my dreams.

"Where's Nocturne?" I asked once I pulled away.

"She said she needed some air so she went outside." Vector told me. I nodded and went to join her. Just before I opened the door, I turned back to Vector.

"Thank you Vector, I really appreciate you being here." He seemed to shy away and grinned a toothy grin.

"Aw don't mention it Arb." With that, I went outside.

Just as Vector had said, Nocturne was sat on the step right outside the door. I assumed she didn't hear me come outside as she didn't react. I sat down and looked at her only to find that she was also crying.

"Nocturne, what's wrong?!" I asked stunned, not once had I seen her cry before.

"So, this is what sadness feels like." She said with a chuckle despite fresh tears still rolling down her face. I wanted to ask questions but Nocturne continued. "I knew your mental state was bad, I just didn't know it was _this_ bad. I always thought that I knew absolutely everything about you but in such a short amount of time, I've learnt that I've done far more damage to you than I ever realised." My stomach sunk hearing her talk like this. It was so unusual for her to be so emotional; she was normally the most disconnected since being a disembodied voice for the majority of her life.

"Nocturne… it's ok." I tried to comfort her but just before I could place my hand on her shoulder, she got up and turned to me.

"How can you say that?! None of this is ok Arb! The reason you're like this is because of me! I did this to you!" Her outburst stopped my voice box from working. I didn't want to say anything else in case I upset her further. She sighed heavily and shook her head. "I'm sorry Arb, I really am and I promise I'll make it up to you somehow but for now…" She paused and looked away from me. "I'll see you later." She then took off as fast as she could without looking back.

"Nocturne!" I called repeatedly but she either didn't hear or chose to ignore me. My eyes stared in the direction she had gone and couldn't look away.

Up on the roof behind me, Espio was stood with his arms folded. His amber eyes locked onto Nocturne until she was out of sight, at which point his gaze lowered until it was on me. His expression was stern and cold.

"_It's only a matter of time."_ He thought before he unfolded his arms, turned and walked away without me noticing that he was there at all.


	7. Redemption

**It's Saturday again! I have two weeks off from college now but I still have to work. Isn't adulthood just great? :(**

**Either way here's a nice new chapter for you. I say 'nice' but the beginning gets a lot darker, you'll know what I mean when you read it but I thought that I should give you all a heads up just in case. Consider yourself warned.**

**Nothing exciting has really happened this week so I guess that's all I have to say for now.**

**I hope you all have a nice week and holidays with whatever you're doing and I'll see you next Saturday!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The day dragged. I spent it sat on the couch watching TV, not having the motivation to move or do anything. Charmy asked if I wanted to play some more video games with him but I used the excuse 'I don't feel well' just so I could be depressed in the living room. I hadn't seen Espio all day, not that I was thinking about him much and Vector was out getting groceries… now that he had enough money to get said groceries.

The croc stumbled through the door several hours later. There were many bags in his hands and a pile of pizza boxes on his head. I quickly got up and got the boxes off of his head and placed them on the table.

"_Looks like we're having pizza again."_ I thought as the boxes were nearly hot enough to burn my hands. Vector had gone into the kitchen and put everything away. He came back out with four glasses of soda, assuming Espio wouldn't want any.

"Where's Nocturne?" He suddenly asked me.

"She's out on a walk." I replied.

"Uh… you said that this morning before I left." He reminded me. I glanced out the window remembering that it was dark now. "Did something happen?" I wanted to just say no but I couldn't lie. Instead, I looked to the floor which basically gave it away anyway. "Come here." He said as he patted a space next to him on the couch. I approached and sat down like he wanted me to and looked up at him. I didn't realise how much taller he was than me till now. "Now then, before I call Charmy down here for dinner, how about you tell me what's up?" He placed one large hand on my shoulder in a comforting manner. I didn't show it, but I was grateful.

"It's kind of complicated." I told him. "She felt bad for being the cause of my mental state." Vector scratched his head; I knew he wouldn't get it.

"How did she cause it?" I thought for a second before answering.

"Can you keep a secret from the others?" I asked. He hesitated and gave me a concerned look.

"I guess so, but why?"

"Charmy wouldn't understand and Espio would use it as ammunition." Vector nodded with a sad expression.

"I'd argue with ya but you're right." He breathed deeply, not enjoying the hateful situation between Espio, Nocturne and I any more than we were. "So how did this happen?"

"Back on Earth, Nocturne never had a physical body." Vector gasped at that alone when in truth, I had barely scratched the surface. "She was nothing more than a disembodied voice that lived inside my head, an alternate personality if you will." The croc simply nodded. "To be brief, I have been through a lot of shit and she was the result. She would drive me crazy every single day just for her own amusement. I was completely powerless to stop her because she was in my own mind… there's no cure for torture." The reptile sat next to me was frozen. I could tell he was listening to each and every word that passed through my mouth. I gazed mindlessly at the wall as I continued. "She literally drove me to the point of madness. I cut myself off from the entire world and endured the hell that she put me through. It even got to the point of not sleeping, eating or having the will to live. It took years and I'm still not sure as to how I achieved this, but I was able to 'tame' her. I use that word because she was like a relentless, wild animal except she had cruel intentions. In other words, she was a sadistic psychopath. The suffering she caused me would cause her pleasure… more than I would rather talk about."

"Holy shit…" Vector whispered. I had never once known him to swear. Not in the games, comics or the TV series. I knew now that what I was talking about must have been somewhat serious but because I had endured it for so many years, it didn't seem that bad to me, as If I had been numbed down by the pain.

"But ever since she calmed down, she has done nothing but to try and bring me back to 'normal' as much as she possibly can. She even feels remorse for the things that she has done to me and if you knew her like I do then you'd understand how rare that is." Vector sat back on the couch and stared at me. The quiet soon got awkward so I picked up the first pizza box and looked inside. It was thankfully pepperoni, my favourite, and I quickly picked up a slice and took a mouthful. My eyes went back to Vector who was still silently staring at me. "Um… are you ok?" I eventually asked. He gave me a weird look when he saw me acting and sounding so casual.

"You don't seem too bothered by any of what you just told me." I shrugged.

"It's not like she's still doing it now. She's become a far better person since then and stopped me from taking my life more times than I can recall." Vector only looked more shocked the more I spoke. "What? I told you I'd been through hell." I took another bite of my pizza and had a sip of soda while the croc spoke.

"I know it's just… doesn't it anger you or sadden you at least knowing what you've been through?"

"Nope."

"Nothing at all?" He made it sound as if I should be a complete wreck, but I wasn't. Was what I was feeling wrong? Should I be a crippling mess? Then I remembered what I had told Nocturne in my dream the night before.

"_Then why is it that I feel so much pain and can't feel happiness?" I questioned her. We had both stopped walking and she was now staring at me with a concerned look._

"_What are you talking about? You've felt happiness before." She paused and thought for a second. "Right?"_

"_I know how to act happy." I told her as I smiled but then my expression became one of extreme sadness. "I just… can't feel it."_

I sat there with my own words repeating themselves over and over again in my mind. I would've driven myself mad thinking about it had Charmy not ran downstairs at the smell of pizza.

"Why didn't either of you call me?!" He yelled as he practically dove into the pizza box.

"Uh sorry Charms." I told him. "It should still be hot." He smiled happily as he chowed down while Vector finally went for his first piece. He was noticeably quiet while we all ate and I could see out of the corner of my eye the concerned look he continued to give me.

"Everything alright Vec?" The bee asked with curiosity.

"Hm?" He grunted, snapping from his trance. "Oh! Yeah I'm good Charms! Just a bit tired from shopping all day." He put on his toothy grin again and Charmy nodded before he returned to eating but I knew that what I had told Vector was bothering him. I just didn't understand why.

We spent the rest of the evening watching TV. It was some outtake show where people would film their friends or family doing something stupid and send it in. The majority of the clips were just random people falling over which for the most part, weren't that funny but every now and then one would come on which would send the three of us into stitches. Surprisingly, Espio was also in the room with us. He was stood in his usual spot by the lockers. He seemed to be watching the TV but he wouldn't react to anything no matter how hilarious it seemed to the rest of us.

Before we all knew it, it had gotten late and everyone was getting ready to go to bed. Vector said he would take care of Charmy so that I could try and get some good sleep. While I was grateful for the gesture, I knew there was little chance of that happening without Nocturne here. Nonetheless, once everyone had gone to their rooms, I turned the lights off and snuggled up on the couch. I gave a heavy sigh before closing my eyes, hoping that I could somehow doze off. Footsteps outside soon caused my eyes to open and stare at the front door. I didn't move and only studied the silhouette as it carefully tiptoed in and closed the door behind it. I breathed an enormous sigh of relief when I saw the shadow had four horns and a coiled tail.

"Nocturne!" I exclaimed.

"Ah!" She jumped up in fright. "I thought you would've been asleep by now." She admitted as she held her chest and breathed deeply.

"I didn't mean to scare you. I was worried about you so I couldn't sleep. Where the hell have you been?" I noticed that she had one bag in her hand as she went to sit down on her couch. I turned the lights back on so we could both see. "What's that?" I asked her. She smiled at me and gestured for me to sit down.

"Firstly, I didn't mean to worry you. I just needed some time to myself so I could clear my mind a little bit. Secondly, I spent the day on a little project I came up with to try and help you with these goddamn voices." As she talked, she rummaged through the bag and pulled out two items. "You remember how you would listen to music 24/7 to help you cope?" I nodded. "Well seeing as you don't have your music player or your headphones here, I figured that might have been why your episodes are becoming more frequent. So I spent the day getting you this music player, these red headphones and searching the web for the closest counterparts to your music… you know since most of it doesn't exist here anyway." I was completely blown away by what Nocturne had done for me. The music player had a touch screen and 16GB of memory. It had a sleek chrome back and a red front. It obviously wasn't cheap. The headphones were a darker shade of red with black detailing and a red wire which would obviously go into the player.

"I… can't believe you did this." I finally said after being stunned for at least a few minutes.

"So… you like it?" She asked nervously. I jumped up and gave her a huge hug forgetting that she wasn't used to this sort of thing. "Uhh…" She said not knowing how to react.

"Oh right…" I said embarrassed. "That's a hug by the way."

"I know what it is it's just I'm not used to it." She told me.

"Basically I'm very thankful. This is awesome!" We both smiled before Nocturne spoke again.

"Anyway, I'm exhausted. Do you think you'll sleep tonight?"

"This should definitely help." She nodded and laid down whilst I got up and turned the lights back off.

"Night Nocturne." I whispered.

"Night Arb." She replied. I put the headphones over my ears and scrolled through the songs she had already put onto it. To my surprise, the Team Chaotix theme song was on it.

"No way, the Chaotix theme is in this world?"

"Yeah, that shocked me to." She admitted. "I guess some things in Earth's portrayal of this place were accurate." I smiled as I put the song on repeat and dozed off to sleep.

The next morning was picture perfect. The sky was a marvellous, clear blue without a cloud in sight and the sun was beaming down making the temperatures soar. Nocturne was the first to wake when she heard noises coming from upstairs. Suddenly, Vector's door burst open and he ran to both Espio's and Charmy's doors and started knocking madly on them.

"Get up! Get up! Get up!" He repeated persistently. Espio was the first to emerge with a look of death upon his face.

"What the hell is going on?" He growled. Judging by how alert the chameleon was, Nocturne figured that he had been awake already and was simply irritated by the rude interruption. Charmy on the other hand hadn't woken up yet… at least until Vector barged into his room and shook him awake.

"Come on Charms! Up and at 'em! We got a big day today!"

"Uggghhh…" He groaned to begin with. "Vector what the heck?! Get off of me!" The bee soon yelled once he was awake.

"Again, what's going on?" Espio repeated as Vector ignored him the first time.

"We're all going to a picnic!" He exclaimed with an unnatural amount of energy.

"Wait, we are?" Nocturne asked. Vector was caught off-guard at the sight of her. She was caught by surprise at the split second death glare he gave her.

"Oh… hey Nocturne. When did you get in?" The croc asked as he came downstairs with Espio following him.

"Late." She said bluntly. "I'll wake up Arby." She told them whilst Vector went into the kitchen.

"So who're we going with?" Charmy asked as he walked out of his door rubbing his eyes.

"Vanilla invited us!" He yelled back. Espio rolled his eyes and Charmy gave a less than excited 'yay'.

"Psst… Arby?" Nocturne whispered as she shook my shoulder. She then noticed my new headphones and felt slightly stupid realising I wouldn't have heard her even if she yelled. Once she pulled them off, she tried again. "Arrrrrrrrbyyyyyyyy!" She shouted but I didn't jump up like she wanted. I simply grunted at her as my eyes opened.

"Do you mind?" I asked with the most unamused face I had ever done.

"Sorry but we're all going to a picnic." She told me as I yawned and stretched.

"We are? With who?"

"Vanilla." She stated with yet another smug grin.

"Wait a sec…" I became more alert and a question quickly came to mind. "Does Vector like Vanilla in this universe to?" I whispered, making sure no one but Nocturne could hear. She gestured for me to follow her and we both peeked round the doorway to the kitchen to see Vector quickly preparing a picnic basket full of snacks and drinks.

"Look at him Arb, look at that face. Do you see that wide smile? Can you hear his cheerful humming? Did you notice his foot tapping to the beat of his music? If you tell me that isn't a crush then I'll slap you." I giggled a bit too loud which caused Vector to turn and look at us. His headphones were around his neck just as mine were, meaning that he could easily notice us.

"Is there something you wanted?" He asked impatiently.

"Nope!" I said quickly before retreating back to the living room.

"I'm good." Nocturne said as she followed.

"But they've never met us before." I suddenly remembered. "How do you think they'll react?" Vector then came back in with a picnic basket all ready to go and answered.

"Oh she's really lovely! I'm sure Vanilla and her daughter will be just fine with you." We were both certain he was going to brag further until Charmy sat next to me and began to talk.

"You know who Cream is right?"

"Yeah, she's apparently one of the most polite rabbits around here along with her mother. Is that correct?" I told him.

"Pretty much. They're both really nice and also Vector fancies Vanilla so don't say anything." Charmy informed us.

"I heard that!" Vector yelled. "Well… well you fancy Cream!"

"What?! I do not!" Charmy yelled back. Nocturne started laughing as she stood next to me. I raised a brow and smiled.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing." She replied with a grin. "Today is just going to be a fun day."


	8. The Life You Choose

**Welcome back everyone! This was a little later in the day than intended but I made this chapter a little longer to make up for it. :)**

**I hope your week has been good. Mine has been just plain tiring with work. I've also been working a lot on my Amnesia/Sonic rewrite. 'What Doesn't Kill You' some of you might have read and some haven't but the rewrite of it is has taken up a lot of my free time but it's gotten to the point now where I should be able to do both without getting behind... 'should'.**

**Anyway, I'll let you read and I'll see you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It had just gone 11am and we were all walking to Vanilla and Cream's house. Vector happily led the way while Charmy was flying next to him. I was behind the two with Nocturne next to me and Espio was at the back, being sure to keep his distance from us. The only two who were talking were Vector and Charmy but I couldn't hear what they were saying as I had my music turned up.

"Come along for the ride… truth can run but not hiiiide!" I sung happily to myself. Nocturne laughed under her breath while Vector instantly picked up on what I was singing. He glanced back at me and smiled. I put my headphones around my neck figuring that he was about to say something.

"Hey, I know that song anywhere!" He announced proudly. "We used to get it played on the radio all the time for advertisement. I can't believe anyone still listens to it."

"Are you kidding? Your theme song is by far my favourite!" I told him. "I listened to it all the time back home."

"Where'd you get those headphones?" Charmy suddenly pointed out. Vector then stopped and took a good look at me.

"Oh yeah. They aren't mine." Vector added.

"No kidding." Nocturne said sarcastically. "I got them for her along with the music player before you ask."

"Aw man!" Charmy complained. "They look so cool! Can I listen?"

"Sure." I took them off from around my neck and placed them on his helmet. I turned it up further so that he could hear it. He suddenly started bopping his head madly which prompted me to hold on to the back of his jacket to stop him from flying into a wall.

"TEAM CHAOTIX!" He unexpectedly yelled. I laughed while Nocturne looked terrified. I was expecting Vector to yell at him and tell him to shut up but instead he joined in.

"They're detectives you want on your siiiiide!"

"Oh my god…" Nocturne said to herself while the three of us, including me, continued to sing the entire theme song until we reached the rabbit's house. Espio on the other hand had a face that could kill in its own right but for the time being, none of us cared.

We eventually came to a quaint, 2-story house which was outside the city. It was pale in colour and surrounded by nature. There was a single road which went past the front of the house and had a paved path leading up to the front door. Vector was the one to go up and knock while we were all told to wait by the fence gate at the end of the garden which was lined with flowers.

"Well…" Nocturne began. "This is certainly a change of scenery."

"Tell me about it. It's so quiet out here." I agreed. After a few minutes of taking everything in, Vector re-joined us with Vanilla, Cream and Cheese the Chao who also had a picnic basket and a red and white checkered blanket.

"Oh and who are you two? I've never seen you before." Vanilla spoke to Nocturne and I. She was so polite to us and sounded so sweet that I couldn't help but feel out of place. I felt like a demon surrounded by angels, like I wasn't good enough to be in their presence.

"I'm Nocturne and this is Arby." She spoke for the both of us. I waved awkwardly; I had no idea what to say, as if saying anything at all would be offensive.

"There's no need to be nervous sweetie." She said with a somewhat high-pitched voice although Cream's voice was much higher. "I'm Vanilla and this is my daughter, Cream. It's very nice to meet you." She smiled warmly at us as did Cream.

"Hi there! This is Cheese, my pet chao!" The younger rabbit greeted. I nodded and smiled, still fearing to speak.

"Chao chao!" Cheese chirped at us.

"She's just a little shy." Nocturne told them which made me even more embarrassed.

"Oh that's ok honey. Vector is to." We all collectively looked at Vector whose cheeks had gone very red.

"Eh heheheh only sometimes." He rubbed the back of his neck and kept walking. We were all heading to a hill nearby that had a single tree on the top which we would all sit under. The view from the top was overlooking the grassy valleys which continued far into the distance. As we all walked up, Nocturne began to talk to me.

"Look at you." She said with a smug grin.

"What about me?" I said unusually quietly.

"I have never seen you look so out of place before. It's like if Shadow went to a baby shower." I looked at her, feeling insulted.

"Oh come on… I'm not that out of place am I?"

"Well… yeah." I sighed and watched the grass pass by as we walked up.

"You're no better with your red and black." I commented but as I looked up, she had changed to white and blue. "Oh come on…" I mumbled to myself.

Once we reached the top, Vanilla laid out the blanket which all of us except Espio sat on. He went and leant against the tree and closed his eyes. My gaze was locked upon him for a good few minutes. I almost envied how he could just separate himself and no one would question it. If I were to do the same then everyone would ask me 'What's wrong?' or 'Are you ok?' or back home 'Stop being so anti-social!' I shuddered again as more bad memories filled my head.

"Are you cold, dear?" Vanilla suddenly asked me.

"Uh… no." I replied still with a quiet voice. I felt ridiculous and I didn't know why.

"Why don't you have some food?" Vector suggested as he handed me a few slices of leftover pizza. I smiled warmly at him and carefully took it.

"You know how to please." I told him as I took the first bite. It was still very delicious even if it was cold.

"Ehem." I heard from next to me. I slowly glanced at Nocturne who didn't look happy. "Where's my piece?" I rolled my eyes and handed a slice to her. "Much better." I relaxed more after that until they brought up our 'publicity stunt' from a few days ago.

"Oh yes! You two were very brave attempting to stop Dr. Eggman." Vanilla praised us causing me to go very red.

"Oh, that was nothing." Nocturne said smugly. I gave her a quick glare.

"That's because you didn't do anything." I reminded her.

"I talked to the guy didn't I? I'm the one who distracted him." Nocturne argued. I nodded just so we wouldn't get into a fight. Charmy, Cream and Cheese had gone off to run around in the grass and play games while Vector focused all of his attention on Vanilla. I took this opportunity to sit against the tree and listen to my music. I felt better now I didn't have anyone to talk to. I didn't know what to look at and kept glancing around until I had noticed Nocturne. I raised a brow when I saw that she had also separated herself from everyone else. Upon studying her, I saw that she was simply stood away from us staring at the sky. Her confused expression made it obvious that she had things on her mind.

"_What is she thinking?"_ I wondered. Was she still struggling with her new life as a physical being? If so, she was covering it up well or maybe it was something else. _"Had Espio gotten to her?"_ But I soon doubted it since she couldn't care less about the other chameleon. I sat there daydreaming about numerous different things until I eventually got up and approached her.

"Everything alright?" I asked once I was stood beside her. She blinked at me a few times with a blank expression before speaking.

"Yeah, all is good." She told me. "Why?"

"You just seemed a bit distant, that's all."

"Well, you're not exactly wrong. I was just thinking."

"About what?" I questioned.

"Shadow." She replied bluntly.

"Shadow? Why him?"

"I just find it odd how he's not the same as Earth's portrayal either. He doesn't work for G.U.N. and he's not this former villain who wanted to redeem himself. Here he's still the bad guy and… I don't know. I just found it a bit strange." Part of me was telling me that she wasn't sharing the whole story but I didn't bug her about it. I simply nodded pretending I understood. One of her favourites wasn't who she thought he was but with Espio, I still had faith that he was the honourable warrior that I had seen in multiple types of Sonic media. Whatever Nocturne was going through, I was certain that I was not.

"Perhaps he's not really like that." I said trying to lighten the mood. "It may just be the same case as Espio where he just needs to get used to us."

"Are you still blinded by your delusion?" She suddenly said bitterly. "He is NOT and I repeat, NOT the Espio you think he is."

"You're only saying that because you hate the guy." She chuckled and shook her head.

"You keep telling yourself that Arb." Nocturne then laid down upon the hill and put her arms behind her head. Feeling awkward just standing next to her, I went back to the tree and rested against it. "Hey Arby?" She then said unexpectedly. I glanced back at her, giving my attention. "When Eggman attacked, did we ever find out what he was going to do?" I scratched my head in thought but nothing came to mind.

"Maybe he was bluffing?" Nocturne shook it off.

"I doubt it, once he sets his mind on something he doesn't usually stop until it ends in either success or failure." The chameleon told me and she was right. He was evil without a doubt but he was undeniably determined.

"I think the cops said something about a device he had which would send out a frequency allowing him to control civilians." Vector spoke up.

"Whoa!" Nocturne seemed impressed by this for reasons I wasn't sure of. To my right, I heard an irritated grunt. Espio still had his eyes closed but I'm certain that he was listening in. My thoughts travelled back to Earth yet again remembering that the ninja had a particular hatred for the doctor, even to the point of threatening his life. I could only assume it was of because of what he did to Charmy and his home. Speaking of the energetic bee, Charmy rushed up the hill with Cream and Cheese following close behind. In his hands was a radio.

"Where did you get that?" Vector questioned before letting the child talk.

"In your desk, listen!" He said quickly before the croc could argue.

"_-Investigators are still unsure as to where the energy fluctuations are coming from but people are advised to stay away from the area until all investigations are finished. _

_Miles 'Tails' Prower, who was also on the scene believes that a Chaos Emerald is causing the spikes but is uncertain due to its strange movements._

_Other areas that are closed off to the public include the mines and the desert border to the north. However, the abandoned power plant, being the first location to have these fluctuations is under heavier investigation. _

_That's all we have for now but we'll keep you updated. Have a nice day."_

"Can we go boss?! Can we please?! It'll be fun!" Charmy begged. I wasn't so sure especially since the area was locked down anyway. Nocturne was grinning madly at the idea of an abandoned power plant while Espio's only change was that his eyes were open.

"I don't remember saying we couldn't." Vector said with enthusiasm. "This could be _the_ big case!" Fond memories of 'Shadow the Hedgehog' came to mind after he spoke, remembering that line from the cut scene before entering the Mad Matrix.

"That sounds dangerous." Cream spoke to us but she kept glancing more at Charmy, clearly showing concern for his safety.

"_Cute."_ I thought whilst smiling on the inside.

"No need to worry. We can spend the rest of today preparing and gathering info and then we'll head out tomorrow night." Vector told all of us.

"Tomorrow night?" Nocturne complained. "Why not tonight?"

"Firstly, because we don't know a thing about the power plant; who knows what could be in there. Secondly, I'd like to spend the day relaxing since I've been doing nothing but paperwork for the past few weeks. Thirdly, Vanilla and Cream kindly invited us here and we've still got the rest of the day to enjoy. So while the weather's good, let's make the most of it yeah?" Nocturne huffed then went back to her spot on the hill. I chuckled to myself at her childish attitude before heading back to the tree.

The rest of the day was spent chatting, relaxing and doing our own thing before heading back to the Chaotix. I felt a mix of anticipation and excitement about the mission ahead. I didn't like breaking into buildings even if they were abandoned yet it was going to be the most extreme thing I had ever done and I couldn't wait. I was like a child on Christmas Eve… except that I hate Christmas.

Later that night, Nocturne had gone out for a walk saying that she just wanted some space before tomorrow. I hung out with Charmy, playing more of his games. This time it was an RPG where your choices affect the ending. I tried to be as good as possible while Charmy kept 'accidentally' committing crimes which gave us the bad ending in the end. We laughed it out afterwards whilst eating ice cream before telling him a story and everyone going to bed. Nocturne got back some time later, she seemed very chirpy which was rare for her but when I asked what was up she responded with 'Nothing major.' I wanted to believe her but her devious grin told me otherwise. Nonetheless, I didn't question her further and went to sleep.

We both slept in till about noon the next day. Vector and Espio had already gone out in order to gather some info about where we were going later that night.

"What if something goes wrong? What if we get caught? What if we-"

"I will pay you right now to shut up." Nocturne groaned as my paranoid state took over. I was terrified as the night of our little mission was fast approaching. Anxiety had kicked in and just sitting around waiting for it to start only made it worse. My chameleon sibling hated it when I was like this because she knew nothing would calm me down.

"We could get caught and go to prison Nocturne!" I told her.

"Or you could be overreacting and jumping to conclusions? I bet you nothing is going to happen. The worst thing I can think of is Espio walking out without a bullet in his head." I was still worrying but at least her last sentence distracted me.

"Are you trying to kill him or something?" I looked at her with and irritated expression whilst she remained glued to the TV sipping her drink.

"No, he's not worth the time or effort. Besides, if he is that easy to capture then he'll probably kill himself." I exhaled loudly before lying back down.

Somehow, the day eventually went past and the sun faded over the horizon. The others returned with a map of the plant and a plan on how to get in quietly whilst still being efficient. We were going to be split into two groups this time, making sure to keep Espio and Nocturne separate. Vector, Espio and Charmy would be the ones to go in and search thoroughly whilst Nocturne and I were on lookout duty. The croc handed each of us our walkie talkies and anything else he thought we needed before we headed out.

_Later that night…_

I had this image that the power plant would be rather small, or at least like the one from Sonic Heroes… I was wrong of course. It was one huge building with many windows, chimneys and fences around the perimeter. It was in the more run down area of the city and because of that, there was little light from the streets or the buildings. It was very dark and it made me both uneasy and content. I was kept hidden whilst at the same time it kept others hidden. On the other hand, Nocturne loved it. In her words, 'the dark is unbiased and will shroud any and all doings.'

We had split up so we could scout outside and cover more ground. On my end, the night was very calm but for Nocturne, things were about to take an unexpected turn.

She was wandering around the edge of the building, almost not caring if anyone showed up or not. Suddenly, she heard something above her. Out of reflex, she jumped to the side and looked up to see a silhouette floating above her. Her expression was blank to begin with until she noticed the pointed ears and wings. Her fighting stance soon relaxed which the thief noticed. She slowly lowered until she had landed next to her.

"Well, hey there sugar." Rouge said, again with as much seductiveness as usual.

"I guess gender isn't an issue with you when it comes to flirting?" Nocturne asked, not bothered by the boldness of her question.

"I don't see why it should be, but on to a more important topic. What is someone like you doing at a place like this?"

"I could ask you the same thing. There isn't anything shiny or valuable out here." Nocturne returned earning a playful giggle out of the bat.

"I'm merely here to check on some things. You didn't answer my question." Nocturne rolled her eyes but answered nonetheless.

"I'm here with the Chaotix. You wouldn't happen to know about any energy fluctuations would you?" She stopped and thought for a second. "Actually, forget it. You wouldn't tell me even if you did know."

"My my, who said I wouldn't tell you? Besides, I must admit that you awoke my curiosity a little bit when we first met."

"Yeah, I'm interesting, I know." She bragged with a very smug grin. "Now it is you who hasn't answered my question." Her grin never ceased as she leaned against Rouge's shoulder.

"Let's just say a certain someone has been causing those spikes on purpose." Her answer was vague but two people instantly came to mind.

"Why?" Nocturne asked, still not sounding all that interested.

"Just to buy some time. Now, what about you? You were rather upset with Espio back at the museum. I certainly hope things have improved since then… I didn't catch your name." She admitted.

"Nocturne and why would you care?" She moved away and leaned against the wall.

"If he was still being a bit of a 'bad boy' then I'm sure an 'unfortunate accident' could befall him." The bat winked. As shocked as she was, Nocturne couldn't help grin further.

"_Now it's getting interesting."_ She thought.

"Like what?"

"I'd love to discuss it here but I think it's a bit too open." The bat moved closer and ran her hand down her folded arm, not that Nocturne minded too much.

"Then where?"

"Shadow's place isn't too far from here. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I brought home a guest."

"And what makes you think I can be trusted?" Their eyes never stopped staring at one another. Neither of them knew what it was, but it was exciting.

"Nothing, but something tells me that you would like a chance to prove your trustworthiness." She couldn't deny it, she was tempted yet part of her thought it was some kind of trap, but even if it was, it would be a thrill, a rush and she would feel alive; something which she has longed for. Her sly grin came back and Rouge returned it. She beckoned the chameleon to follow which she did without hesitation. As they began to leave the district, a question rang in the reptilian's mind.

"Shadow lives somewhere? That seems a bit… 'normal' for him don't you think?"

"I can see why but I live there more than he does. He's usually out doing his own thing but if he needed to rest, then he has a little place where he can go that no one knows about." Rouge explained.

"Is it a mansion?" Nocturne joked, the bat chuckled in response.

"If only, it's just an apartment but at least the inside looks fancy."

"And the chances of Shadow Chaos Spearing me once we get there?"

"Oh, he wouldn't do that." The bat teased. "He'd probably see you as more of an asset considering the amount of information you appear to have about us." Nocturne smirked once more and allowed her devilish playfulness to show.

"Any chance I could ever be anything more?" Rouge stopped and turned to the chameleon. She landed and gently placed a finger under her chin.

"If you can get past his icy exterior, then you can be whatever you like." She was about to turn and fly until Nocturne said one more thing.

"Who knows? If you play nice, I could include you to." Rouge raised a brow as she smirked back at the reptile. No matter what happens, the dark would shroud any and all doings.


	9. Darkness of the Night

**Hooray! It's Saturday again! This week has been slow with nothing major happening. The snake has begun to shed though. His eyes are all greyed out and he looks demonic. I won't lie... he looks creepy.**

**I got Alien: Isolation and I am in love with it! Tension scares are the best scares. Not cheap jumps or anything like that. I love Amnesia for the same reason. I also got Fable II but I have yet to play through that.**

**That's about it. I hope you all had a good week as always and I will see you next Saturday for Chapter 10!**

**See you then!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

A large apartment building appeared before them. It was run down and dirty, not at all the scenery Nocturne had expected. Rouge led her through the corridors and into a less than stable elevator. Nocturne looked around the confined space as they travelled up to the top floor while Rouge kept her eyes on the curious chameleon. The metal doors soon slid open with a slight screech. At the end of the hallway was the door into the Ultimate Life Form's apartment. Upon opening the door, it was like stepping into another building.

A dark red carpet ran throughout which matched Shadow's markings. A brighter red border ran around the white ceiling while the walls were black. Before Nocturne could get lost in the sudden change of surroundings, she was greeted by the irritated individual who lived here.

"What the hell are you doing here?" His voice would have been intimidating to most but Nocturne saw past it and smirked.

"Rouge said that you missed me so she brought me here." A cold glare was directed to the bat before he spoke again.

"Why did you bring her here? She could give away our location." He growled.

"Would you relax? She won't do that."

"How do you know that?" The hedgehog demanded.

"Look, can you stop for a second and realise that she might actually be valuable? We've never seen her before and yet she knows our names."

"We're not exactly secrets Rouge! Half the world probably knows our names!" His voice had risen slightly but Nocturne stepped in before fists began flying.

"I could prove it to you Shadow. I know far more than just your names." She casually folded her arms and leaned against the counter of the kitchen.

"Is that so?" A smirk of his own slowly forming. "Then feel free to demonstrate… Nocturne." The sound of his voice saying her name was truly hypnotic to her. It sounded smooth yet toxic. She did well to cover the shiver that ran through her body before obeying him.

"I know who you truly are, Ultimate Life Form." She began, earning a sudden serious expression from the black mammal. "I know who created you, where you were created and the tragedy that happened."

"You know about all of that?" Rouge butted in out of shock.

"No! She's bluffing!" Shadow hissed but the reptile went on.

"You were created by Professor Gerald Robotnik on board the Space Colony ARK; using the DNA of Black Doom of course. The military soon found out and, long story short, they raided the ARK and-"

"Stop!" Shadow ordered. His eyes were closed and his gritted teeth were showing. Two ruby orbs slowly revealed themselves as they stared at Nocturne. "I get it." His voice now being much quieter.

"No shit." Nocturne replied. Rouge glanced between the two with slight concern. The black and red reptile had only been here five minutes and already she had Shadow at her mercy. Perhaps she had underestimated her? The bat shook it off and went to the suffering hedgehog.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." He said bluntly. Not wanting to get too emotional, Nocturne changed the subject.

"So Rouge, you talked about something bad happening to Espio? Could you elaborate on that?"

"Of course sugar." She said returning to her flirtatious façade. "Our little museum adventure wasn't the first time that the Chaotix have stopped us in our mission. They have somehow been halting our plans long before you came into the picture. While Vector and Charmy aren't that big of a deal, Espio is the blade of the knife."

"He has been getting in our way far too much, to the point where we now need to focus on him before we can move on." Shadow added.

"All I know is that you're after the Chaos Emeralds. May I ask why?" Nocturne questioned. The pair looked at each other but in the end, Shadow shook his head.

"That's a story for another day." The bat told her. "We just want to know if we're wasting our time with you."

"How cold." Nocturne joked. "But to answer your question, to some extent, yes."

"I don't understand. You made it clear that you hated the chameleon." Shadow reminded her.

"That still remains true Shadow, but I also made it clear that I will not see my sister hurt, especially if I'm the one who caused that pain."

"But what if your sister didn't know it was you?" Rouge suggested, peaking Nocturne's curiosity.

"How?"

"You simply be the bait and we'll do the rest." Shadow's smirk grew the more he talked about it. Nocturne wasn't sure if it was the idea of something unfortunate happening to him or someone vaguely close to the guy turning against him. The reptile meanwhile was thinking it over in her head and had unknowingly remained silent for several minutes until Rouge strolled up to her and put her face somewhat too close to hers.

"So whaddya say? Would you be willing to lend us a hand? It'll be worth your while." She looked at the bat with half-closed eyes and a sly grin. Her face suddenly turned very cold causing Rouge to back away just enough so that it was noticeable.

"Under one condition." Her voice could freeze time if she wanted it to. "Neither of you say a word to Arby or the Chaotix or anyone for that matter. I know where you hide whilst I go against the others. Speak of this and the world will know everything about you." Shadow stood with a fiery glare, as if to melt the arctic aura she was suddenly giving off.

"Is that blackmail?"

"Only if you want it to be or it can be an agreement so that we can work together and make things a little more interesting." The mammal folded his arms whilst Rouge placed her hands on Nocturne's shoulders.

"An agreement it is."

"She has to be somewhere." I said with worry clear in my voice. We had been looking for Nocturne for nearly an hour now. She was nowhere in or around the power plant and now we had grouped up and were searching the surrounding district.

"Any idea why she would just disappear?" Vector asked trying to gather clues like the good detective he was.

"I don't know. Did Espio do anything?"

"He's been with us all night." Charmy pointed out.

"Yeah, you're right… dammit!" I kicked a nearby streetlight out of frustration.

"Could she have been taken?" The croc suggested but I had my doubts. Firstly, who would take her? Secondly, why would whoever it was take her? None of it made sense to me.

"She hasn't done anything Vector. No one has any reason to just kidnap her like this." I told him.

"Maybe she went for a walk?" Charmy added. "She's been doing that a lot lately right?"

"But why in the middle of a mission?" Vector complained.

"She can be a bit… spontaneous at times so I guess that would make sense." I thought more about it and it seemed like the only logical explanation. After more searching, no idea how much more, we decided to call it a night and head home.

We all went to bed as soon as we got in but I'm pretty sure I was the only one who was still awake. Nocturne hadn't come back from wherever she was and I was beginning to think that she wouldn't come back at all. I flipped on the TV with some loose expectation that something good would be on, forgetting that any of the shows I liked didn't exist in this world. My thoughts travelled back to Earth. I glanced at the time, 2:30am, and wondered what I would be doing if I was at home.

"_Fan fiction."_ I chuckled, remembering that I would usually be up till either 5 or 6am coming up with ideas. I could never do that now.

The TV went off, not that I was watching it anyway and I skimmed through the many songs on my music player hoping that one of them would calm me enough for me to sleep the night away. That didn't happen however; instead, a faint rumbling caught my attention. Taking my headphones off, I listened to the distant noise as it got louder until I was certain that it was right outside the house. Footsteps then filled my ears until the front door opened.

"N-Nocturne?" I whispered nervously.

"Psst, hey Arb." I got in return.

"Where the fuck have you been?!" I replied instantly as soon as I heard her voice. I was angry but only because I had been worried.

"That doesn't matter. I've got to show you something." Before I could argue, she went back outside. In a sigh of defeat, I got up and followed her. The night air was surprisingly warm as I stepped out of the door.

"What is it?" I asked her. She pointed to the edge of the road where a motorbike was parked. My eyes narrowed and looked at Nocturne. "Did you get a motorbike?"

"No way, I don't have the money for that." She said with a chuckle.

"Then how did you get it?" Her expression looked back at me surprised. Was I missing something? "What?"

"You know what bike that is right?" I walked up to the bike with confusion and studied it. At first it seemed like a usual bike. It was painted black, had two tyres, the one at the back being thicker than the one at the front and one big headlight. What made my eyes widen though, was the symbol that was on the side. It was a white letter 'G' that had white stars surrounding it.

"N-N-Nocturne…" I stuttered in disbelief. "Nocturne?" I said again. She was stood behind me with a grin that I was certain could reach the end of the street. "I-is that?" I could barely talk and the chameleon found great amusement in that fact.

"Before you hurt yourself Arby, yes it is" She answered. My mouth opened but words didn't come out, as if I had been paralysed just by being near this thing. "Nice huh?" She went on casually until one of the many questions I had was finally let out.

"How did you get this thing?" She looked to her feet and gently kicked the gravel on the path.

"He uh… let me borrow it?" I glared at her and she knew I was glaring at her even if she was doing her best to avoid eye contact. "You don't believe me do you?" She looked up to me slowly shaking my head.

"How did you _really_ get it?" Part of me already knew but I wanted her to say it first.

"Um well… I kind of, might have… stolen it?"

"WHAT?!" I shouted.

"Shh! Keep your damn voice down!" She scolded me but in my moment of rage, I didn't care if the whole world heard me.

"I will not! What the fuck were you thinking!?"

"It's not like I'm keeping it! I'm going to give it back; I just wanted to see what it was like."

"Oh, well that's fine then." My voice sounded suddenly casual which stunned the reptile.

"Really?"

"NO!" The rage returned. "Do you realise what could happen to you?! You could be sent to prison for this!"

"I will if you keep talking this loudly!" She hissed. I breathed deeply to calm myself and to not wake anyone up. If the others knew about this then I'm certain it would be me that would take the beating.

"It's not just prison Nocturne; Shadow will have your damn head for this." My voice no longer yelling but still raised and stern.

"No he won't. Everyone thinks he's this 'brutal killer' that has no mercy towards anyone."

"I never said that, but he's not going to be pleased to see his bike missing. He will hunt you down and kick your ass."

"He's softer than that." She tried to reason with me.

"Oh really? So he sits in front of the TV with warm milk whilst cuddling several plushies?"

"…He's not five." She replied becoming gradually more irritated. "The worst he'd do is yell at me. Chance are that he wouldn't even lay a finger on me." I sighed, it was already done and there was no way of talking Nocturne out of it. She was just as stubborn as me.

"So what are you going to do with it?"

"Exactly what I said. Take it for a spin and then give it back."

"How do you know where he lives?" She got back on the bike as she answered.

"Lucky guess." Her answer was so brief that I nearly missed it. Before I could question her further, she spoke. "You want to come? I know how much you adore this thing."

"No." I said in a sad tone which the reptile either didn't pick up on or just ignored.

"Alright, your loss. See ya!" In an instant, she sped off down the road with the engine roaring through the streets.

"How on Mobius does she know how to drive a bike?" I asked myself.

"_Lucky guess."_ I thought. As I returned to the couch, anxiety filled my stomach. Do I tell the others or keep it hidden? What if they asked? What would I tell them? I can't lie to cover her back… can I? I was feeling guilty despite not being the one to steal it. She chose to take it yet I know I'll get the blame, as if she's my responsibility. Vector will question me and Espio…

"He's going to have a field day with this." I groaned before pulling the blanket over my head and forcing myself to sleep.


	10. Shadowed Iintentions

**Yay it's Satur- oh wait. Yes, I know this chapter is late but I haven't been well lately and I just didn't have the mental energy to focus. Not a big deal, it's here now. Better late than never right?**

**I really don't have much to say this week. Nothing majorly exciting usually happens. I'm the kind of person that gets excited by the smaller things but I won't go on about them.**

**Anyway, here's the chapter and I'll see you again next week!**

**Arby xx **

* * *

The next morning could not have come quick enough. I spent the night enduring the voices alone which severely impacted my mental state. I felt entirely numb of all emotion as the sun rose and didn't care that I was shivering violently. The strange part was that it wasn't cold… I was.

Vector was the first to come downstairs but I'm certain that Espio would have been the first to awaken, knowing how much he enjoys the early mornings. I didn't get up or say anything and the green croc tried his best to be quiet as he got some coffee and sat at his desk. I'm pretty sure he thought I was still asleep but I was far too busy staring at the back of the couch to think. Since my only sight was brown, worn cushions, I relied on my hearing to try and figure out what was going on. Pages were being turned nearby with the occasional gulp of coffee. Subtle, almost silent footsteps then came from the stairs. Obviously not Charmy, he practically charges down them as if mimicking a stampede. It was Espio who approached Vector and began to talk.

"Vector, good morning." He began.

"Mornin' Es." He greeted in return.

"Did you hear anything last night?" It was an odd question in its own right but then it came back to me; Nocturne with Shadow's motorbike the night before. My eyes widened but I didn't give any indication that I was awake.

"Not a thing, why?" Vector asked.

"I heard an engine, or to be more precise, a motorcycle engine."

"So?" The big boss didn't see the point but Espio was quick to explain.

"I think Shadow was here last night."

"What?!" Vector exclaimed. To my surprise, Espio shushed him. Was he being considerate? I doubt it, he probably just didn't want me finding out but he had no idea. There was silence for several seconds and I could feel both their eyes burning through my head hoping that I wouldn't 'wake up'.

"Why would Shadow come here?" The larger reptile's voice now nearly a whisper.

"That I am uncertain. Nothing has been taken and there are no signs of damage, except for some tyre marks from when he left."

"_Nocturne, you fucking idiot."_ I thought.

"So why?" He repeated.

"Again, I don't know. My only idea is that he could have been scouting although I have no idea what for." Espio explained. Vector was obviously clueless, of course neither of them had any idea who was _actually_ here.

"There isn't much we can do for now. He didn't do any damage and that's what matters. If Shadow is up to something then chances are we'll know about it." Espio said nothing else and returned to his room. I 'slept' for a bit longer until I decided that it had been long enough for it to look like I had just woken up on my own. After doing the usual 'pretend to stretch and yawn' routine, I got up and said my greetings.

"Hey Vec."

"Mornin' Arby." A genuine smile on his face as he spoke. "Can I ask ya somethin'?" I knew what he was going to say but played along nonetheless.

"Sure, what's up?"

"You didn't by any chance hear a motorbike or anythin' last night did ya?" I shook my head. I couldn't just throw Nocturne into the fire even if she did deserve it, especially with the amount of times that she's been there for me.

"Nope, why?"

"Oh, Espio said he heard an engine and he thinks Shadow might be up to somethin'."

"Why?" I questioned.

"That's what I asked. Espio thought he may have been scouting. With no leads though, there's nothing we can do." I nodded my head before heading into the kitchen.

"Any plans for today then?"

"Nothing so far but it is still early so you never know." How could he be so optimistic? I never understood how anyone could look on the brighter side of things. To me, it was just setting yourself up for a let-down. At least if you were pessimistic, you would be pleasantly surprised every time something good crossed your path. "You should at least make the most of the day though. I'm quite content just sitting by the phone."

"But… don't you need me here?" I said whilst poking my head back through the doorway.

"I'm not saying you have to go anywhere. You're perfectly welcome to relax on the couch but the weather's gonna be another scorcher and it would be more fun in the city. Don't worry about here; you've got my permission to take the day off." After thinking it over for a few moments, I decided what the heck and ventured around the maze of sky-reaching towers.

Being in large crowds was something that always bothered me and now was no exception. I was certain that if someone was watching the chaos from above, it would look like thousands of ants going in each and every direction. After nearly getting run over three times, I made it to the main shopping mall that I remembered seeing with Charmy and Nocturne. I didn't have any particular reason for being here, I didn't even know if I was going to get anything. The variety of smaller shops within this shopaholic paradise was mind-blowing. I had never seen anything like it since I had lived in just a small town for the majority of my life.

There were three floors, each with escalators leading to them. There were stores for clothing, games, general groceries, jewellery, musical instruments, fast food; even on the bottom floor there was a dealership for cars and motorbikes! Just being in this place with its constant busy atmosphere kept the excitement firmly flowing in my veins.

I kept browsing around, only getting a coke with ice once the warmth got a bit too much and I'm the kind of person who would wear multiple jackets during the summer so I knew my fur was doing its job.

I got some quick lunch at a café nearby before taking a look at the motorbikes on the bottom floor. They were all far out of my reach since only having a few hundred rings. One in particular caught my eye; it was dark purple with a dark red lightning bolt on either side. It was the same kind of bike as Shadow's except smaller, also why I took a liking to it since I'm not exactly the tallest person to exist.

"_One day…"_ I thought as if there was some kind of chance of me getting nearly the 10,000 rings required for the thing.

Suddenly, I was tackled from behind and sent to the floor with a painful slam to the head.

"SONIIIICCC!" The name screeched horribly in my ear and that alone was enough to tell me who it was. I was stunned for a few moments after the impact and I could hear someone else calling out.

"Amy, that's not Sonic!" The pink hedgehog got off of me and spoke.

"Oh my! I'm so so so sorry Shadow!" She said unnaturally quickly as she helped me to my feet. I held the part of my head that took the beating and groaned in pain. "Wait a sec… you aren't Shadow."

"No kidding." I said coldly.

"Who are you?"

"Amy!" The other voice called out. She was closer this time and now I could tell who it was. Cream came running up to us and quickly explained to Amy who I was. "This is Arby, one of the Chaotix who I told you about, remember?"

"Oh yeah!" She suddenly went all embarrassed which I couldn't help but smirk at. "You uh… do look a lot like Shadow though."

"You aren't the first to notice." I told her, remembering Charmy's comments when I first got here. I did wonder how on Mobius she mistook me for Sonic. I then remembered that I'm not the first. She also mistook Shadow and Silver for the blue blur as well. Thinking deeper, I wondered if her obsession with him was causing her to hallucinate that every hedgehog she saw was her supposed 'one and only'. I inwardly freaked out at the thought realising that it was a logical explanation and even began to feel a little sympathetic towards her.

"Are you ok?" Cream spoke up.

"Oh, uh… yeah. My head hurts though." I said.

"We were about to head to Tails' workshop before I noticed you. Do you want to come? We can put something on your head. Consider it an apology for jumping on you like that." Amy explained. I smiled and nodded. The three of us then left the mall with me following close behind.

_Meanwhile…_

"Shouldn't you be at home? You don't live here you know." The grumpy hedgehog spat at Nocturne who was relaxing on the couch. He was still pissed after finding out that she took his bike, and even more pissed when he found that she crashed it.

"Who says I can't? Besides, I technically work for you now so I should be able to drop by and stick around whenever I please." Her voice sounded so casual that it wound Shadow up further.

"Not here you can't. You should be getting info for us, now go and do it before something unfortunate happens." His voice had a growl to it but as usual, the reptile wasn't phased.

"Already throwing empty threats at me? Sheesh, when you get off your man period, let me know." Shadow's fists had clenched by this point but he still remained behind the couch as she got up. "I gotta admit though, this communicator is cool. It completely blends in with my arm." Rouge walked up to them both and spoke.

"Remember to use that thing once you're certain that no one else is around and be sure to inform us of anything and everything. I know you won't let us down even if Shadow isn't so sure." The bat teased.

"You're the one who brought a random chameleon to our hideout and you still expect me to trust her instantly?" Shadow said with a glare.

"I'm guessing my word isn't enough for you?" Nocturne asked.

"No." Shadow stated bluntly causing Nocturne to roll her eyes.

"Whatever grouchy. I'll be sure to stir things up, don't you worry." She smirked and winked at the both of them before heading for the door. Once gone, Rouge turned to Shadow who looked like he was about to Chaos Blast the entire apartment block to oblivion.

"We can always get you a new one." She told him, referring to his destroyed motorcycle.

"Crazy bitch." He returned with his arms folded.

_Meanwhile…_

When they said Tails' workshop, I thought of just a garage that had workbenches and parts lying around. While that image was somewhat accurate, what caught me by surprise was the house attached to it and the runway with the Tornado parked in a hangar behind it.

"Is Tails rich? Look at this place! It's amazing!" I asked whilst looking in awe at the structure before me.

"Everything you see here he built himself from scratch." Cream told me.

"What? Seriously? I thought he only specialised in machinery?"

"He favours machinery yes, but he can build anything if he puts his mind to it." Amy added as we walked up and knocked on the garage door. I looked around and gasped at the huge satellite dish on the roof.

"_How does the roof not collapse?"_ I thought before the door sliding upwards brought me back.

"Hey everyone!" Tails greeted with a wrench in his hand. Each of us said our hello's until it got to me. "I haven't seen you before." The fox walked up to me and held out his hand. "I'm Tails, what's your name?"

"Arby." I replied as I shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you. I must say that you look a lot like someone I know."

"If you mean Shadow then again, you aren't the first to notice." I looked at Amy who deliberately pretended that I wasn't there.

"Oh did she mistake you for Sonic?" Tails asked once he noticed who I was focused on.

"Tails!" She exclaimed.

"Heh, sorry. She does that a lot. Are you ok?" He stared at me trying his best to ignore Amy's fiery expression.

"Just a knock to the head." I told him.

"I've got ice packs in the house. Follow me." We all did just that and went through the side door in the garage and into his very spacious living room/kitchen. There were gadgets and tech everywhere which I also assumed he had made himself. He approached the giant fridge/freezer and the door opened on its own. He got out an ice pack and handed it to me which I placed on my head. "Feel free to make yourselves at home." He said warmly as he gestured to the sofas which were overshadowed by the biggest wall-mounted TV I had ever seen. The most amazing part was that it came out of the wall whenever someone was nearby. I sat down to notice several buttons on the arm. At the risk of being one of the few to be murdered by a couch, I pushed one and was relieved when it reclined back.

"This is awesome." I announced to the others.

"This place really is incredible. Yet he still adds and improves bits and pieces every day. I don't think a moment goes by where he isn't tinkering with something." Cream explained. Tails sat down opposite the three of us and spoke proudly about his current project.

"Before you got here, I was working on some thermal cameras which I'm planning on putting on the Tornado. I don't usually fly in bad weather for obvious reasons but if there was an emergency and we needed to fly during a storm, then we would need some way of knowing what was in front of us."

"That's a good idea." Cream complimented getting an embarrassed 'thanks' from the fox himself.

"So, I take it Sonic isn't here?" Amy suddenly asked. I rolled my eyes; I knew she would inquire about the blue mammal at some point.

"No, he went for a run a while ago but he should be back soon." It then occurred to me that I hadn't met the blue hedgehog before. I suddenly became nervous; my thoughts of the guy were similar to Shadow's. I personally thought that he was immature, cocky and arrogant. Out of the entire Sonic cast, it was the main mammal himself that I disliked the most. As if hearing his name from a mile away, the blue boy himself came to a sudden halt in the living room.

"Hey guys-"

"SONIC!" Amy squealed as she leapt on him as if he was a magnet. I cringed slightly, now knowing how much those death hugs really could hurt.

"Uh… hey… Amy." He struggled within her grasp. Sonic somehow managed to get her off of him before greeting the rest of us. I got an odd look when his emerald eyes fell upon me. "Shadow? What are you doing here?"

"Are you kidding me?" I said calmly in response. Once he heard my voice, he then realised his error.

"Woops… my bad. You just-"

"Look a lot like him, I'm aware." I finished for him. "I'm Arby, not Shadow." We both chuckled.

"I'm Sonic. I'm guessing that head injury is from 'you know who'." He nudged his head in Amy's direction. How she didn't notice is beyond me. I nodded and we both chuckled again before his strange look from earlier returned. "Still, you do look familiar. I know I've seen you somewhere." Everyone suddenly focused on me as if I had murdered someone. I glanced around nervously before Tails jumped up in realisation.

"She was on the news!" We all collectively looked at him as he went on. "She stopped Eggman in the park remember? She was with Charmy and a chameleon!"

"Oh yeah!" Everyone else soon remembered and my face went redder than Knuckles' hair. Cream already knew but I think she just chose to stay quiet, I couldn't blame her.

"That was cool what you guys did." Sonic praised. "Out of curiosity, who was that chameleon? It was definitely not Espio."

"That was my sister, Nocturne." My voice seemed to sadden as I spoke her name. She was still out there and I had no idea where with Shadow's bike, assuming she still had it.

"You alright?" The blue hedgehog asked.

"I haven't seen her much these past few days. I was wondering if any of you might have seen her?" I made it sound as if I was asking out of worry but in truth, I was asking to make sure no one saw her with Shadow's bike. One by one, they all shook their heads… except for Tails.

"I saw something late last night!"

"What did you see?" I asked him.

"I was testing out the new cameras on the Tornado. The ones I was telling you about before I decided to make them thermal. Anyway, I was flying around the city when the cameras picked up a motorbike charging through the streets. Thank Chaos they were empty. I kept watching it until it went out of control and smashed into the side of one of the buildings." My face went very pale. "I landed to investigate but there was no one around, just the burning bike. So I can only assume whoever was riding it made it out ok." I calmed a little knowing that she was alive but she could have been injured which could lead to worse things.

"I hope that wasn't her." I said as if I had no idea.

"Don't worry!" Sonic said as he jumped back into the conversation. "I'm sure Nocturne is ok!" He gave his usual grin and thumbs up as if it was some kind of package deal. I used to question if he just said that or if he really knew that it would be ok; now I knew that he just said it. I nodded just to keep him happy before checking the time on my music player. I was surprised to see that it was half four. Had time really flown that quickly?

"I'd better get back to the Chaotix. It's getting late." I announced to everyone.

"Do you know your way back from here?" Amy pointed out. I slowly shook my head, realising that I didn't.

"We can show you, we're going that way anyway." Cream offered and I was grateful. We all said our goodbyes before heading out.

We were all quiet at first and it honestly felt a little awkward but as usual, Amy was the one to start up a conversation.

"So what's it like living with the Chaotix? I bet it's dull since nothing happens there." She spoke as if she had any idea what it was like. I gave a cold look even though she was looking forward at the time.

"Actually, it's one of the most welcoming places I've ever been in."

"Wow, really?" She sounded surprised, but why? I decided not to dwell on the subject and we all continued to walk. "What's Charmy like? Does he bug you to? Pardon the pun." Again, another harsh glare resumed its position. Where was she getting these stereotypes from? They were really starting to get on my nerves.

"What do you mean 'bug me to'? He doesn't 'bug' me at all. In fact, the little guy and I get on really well."

"Wow, you must have some impressive tolerance then." At that moment, I wanted to tell her to shut her mouth but I thought better of it. To me, she sounded like a bully. I wouldn't be surprised if she picked on Charmy if he was ever around. A silent rage bubbled in my gut.

"_If she ever did that in front of me…"_ I thought but then stopped once we were outside the Chaotix door.

"Thanks for walking me back you guys." I said trying to sound as calm as possible.

"Not a problem. We're actually having tea and cakes at Tails' place tomorrow. You can come if you want?" Amy suggested.

"It would be great to get to know you better!" Cream chirped happily at me. Oddly, I only just noticed that Cheese wasn't around and suddenly felt the urge to ask about the little Chao.

"I know this is off topic, but where's Cheese?"

"Oh, Cheese is at home. He wasn't feeling well." The young rabbit informed me.

"Aww, tell him that I hope he gets better soon." I said with a warm smile, which she gladly returned.

"Of course, thank you Arby."

"As for tomorrow, can I bring the others?" I said whilst pointing to the Chaotix building behind me.

"Sure! We don't get to see them enough." Cream said with excitement. I was quick to notice the irritated looked on Amy's face, even if she did try to hide it. Instead of getting mad, I took this opportunity to rub salt in the wound.

"Awesome! I'll be sure to bring them along." A wide grin was on my face.

"Come on Cream, I should get you home." Amy said sternly. She obviously noticed what I was doing.

"Ok, bye Arby!" I waved them off before going inside.

"_Tomorrow is going to be fun."_


	11. The Little Things

**Welcome! It actually is a Saturday this time! I'm feeling better than I did last week so that is a bonus. I'm even catching up on coursework, imagine that?! I shock myself.**

**I've been listening to a lot of Sonic Rush Adventure music this week. it's been so long since I've heard this stuff and it's certainly giving me more ideas for this fan fiction. I can't tell you unfortunately but they're there :)**

**Here's Chapter 11 for you to enjoy and I'll see you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

I was moments from saying my greetings as I walked through the front door to the Chaotix when Vector held his hand up. I stared blankly at him when he suddenly began pointing to the couch. Not sure what he was getting at, I approached where he was pointing to see a black and red chameleon casually lying upon the cushions. A rush of many emotions came over me but for the moment, I was just relieved to see her alive and well.

"Nocturne!" I shouted before giving her a hug; this time ignoring how uncomfortable it made her.

"Well… someone missed me." She commented with her usual sly smirk.

"Are you ok?!" She looked confused but laughed it off.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?" I nearly slapped myself remembering that the others didn't know about what she got up to and quickly thought of an excuse.

"You just haven't been around. I thought maybe you were taken or something had happened." Her grin grew; she knew what I was doing and thankfully played along.

"Yeah right, as if someone could just 'take me'. You don't have to worry Arb, I can look after myself. It's just sometimes I like to do my own thing with no boundaries holding me back. That doesn't mean I won't return though, so try to relax when I'm not around ok?" I smiled. Was she being genuine? If not, then she was pulling off the façade well. Vector grinned and got back to whatever he was doing. He was writing things down; I just didn't know exactly what. Finally returning to my couch, Vector spoke to me whilst still writing.

"So, did you get up to anything exciting?" He asked. I explained my day firstly by going to the mall, then 'meeting' Amy, Tails and Sonic. Nocturne seemed to find it side-splittingly hilarious that the pink mammal mistook me for the blue one. Her hysterics set Vector off which in turn set me off. Charmy emerged from his room and wondered what in the world we found so funny. After telling him the story, he proceeded to join us in our uncontrollable fits of laughter.

It took a while for us all to calm down but I eventually got round to telling them about the get together tomorrow.

"So, would I be meeting everyone else then to?" Nocturne asked.

"I guess so. Keep your eyes on Amy though." I warned her.

"Why?"

"To me at least, I can see why her second name is Rose. She's got that look of innocence but one wrong move and it's the thorns."

"That was… oddly poetic for you." Vector pointed out. I agreed with him, that metaphor came from nowhere.

"I know. That's the kind of thing Espio would say." I got a huff from the dark chameleon next to me.

"You would bring him up." I rolled my eyes and left the subject alone.

"So you guys want to come?" I asked getting back to the point.

"I'm not sure about Espio but I can tell you for sure that the rest of us will go." A toothy grin graced his face. Charmy nodded madly, he obviously didn't want to be left here. I looked back to Nocturne who shrugged her shoulders.

"Sure, a potential fight could be interesting." I knew that was as good as I was going to get and just nodded at her; that didn't mean I agreed though.

The rest of the night was as normal as any other. TV, dinner which for once wasn't pizza and then bed. Vector had gathered loads of different fillings along with some baguettes. It was like a buffet. We all picked what we wanted and chowed down while watching a movie. It was called _'Chaos Wars'_ and was easily the best thing I had watched since being on Mobius. In short, it was about how people in power had gone corrupt and the people that those in power thought of as 'insignificant' overthrew them and brought the country back to some form of decency. It empowered me if anything. The thought of being a nobody yet still having the ability to change the world. Who knows? That could be all of us someday. I chuckled at the idea realising I was just caught up in the action and amazing soundtrack.

_The Next Morning_

"What's taking them so long?" Nocturne complained as her, Charmy and I waited outside the front door for Vector and Espio. Yep that's right, Espio is coming along. I couldn't believe it when the tall croc told me but I didn't have anything against it. I would even go as far as to say that I was glad that he came along.

"Be patient Nocturne, they're just getting some last minute things." I told her. She sat on the step and shrugged her shoulders.

"I want cake!" Charmy sang more than yelled.

"Don't you start." I said with a chuckle, earning one in return from the bee. The two reptiles in question then walked out with Vector locking the door behind him.

"Alright then, let's go." Vector told us before we all collectively walked to Tails' workshop. I felt on edge today. I could just sense that something would go wrong, but what? From what I knew, I was pretty sure that Nocturne and Amy wouldn't see eye to eye. The chameleon had the tendency to push buttons while the hedgehog had the tendency to overreact; two characteristics which never went hand in hand.

As it turned out, the three original Chaotix all knew where the house was already which thankfully saved me the job of showing them since I couldn't remember all that well myself. Vector and Charmy led with Nocturne and I behind them whilst Espio again was at the back.

The walk there was nothing special and it didn't take us too long although I didn't have a clue since I was zoned out listening to music. I knocked on the garage door just like yesterday and once again, Tails opened up. He welcomed us inside and we all sat down. Vector nearly had a heart attack when he saw Vanilla there along with Cheese who was feeling better. I had to control the urge to laugh but Nocturne wasn't quite as considerate.

"What's up Vec? A certain rabbit making you uncomfortable?" Her voice was leaking sarcasm from the seams and Vector didn't appreciate it at all. He didn't do anything to ruin the atmosphere or let anyone know that something was up, but the glare he gave her quite literally frightened me to my core. I could see Nocturne's expression instantly but she shrugged and turned away. It scared her to; she was just trying to hide it. Regardless of the slight bump in the road, Vector still went over and began talking to her as if nothing had happened. Charmy and Cream were sat talking in the middle of the living room floor whilst Cheese was sat on top of the bee's helmet. A smile forced its way across my face at the sight.

Upon looking around, Tails was finishing up some snacks in the kitchen while Amy was… chatting with Nocturne? I kept questioning if my eyes were lying to me but upon rubbing them, I saw it right there. Amy and Nocturne appeared to be having a decent conversation to say the least. The pink mammal was smiling and talking, probably about Sonic while Nocturne would chuckle every now and then whilst talking back. My curiosity wouldn't allow me to just sit down without venturing into this further. I approached them trying to be as casual as possible. They both stopped talking and turned to me.

"Sup Arb." Nocturne said whilst Amy smiled and gave a small wave.

"Hey, what are you guys talking about?"

"Just about your mistaken identity yesterday. I wish I was there, I would have been in stitches." Nocturne proudly announced. What was it about others misfortune that amused her so much?

"Out of curiosity, before I… 'bumped' into you…" I rolled my eyes as the hedgehog spoke. "You seemed to be looking at something through a window. Whatever it was appeared to have made you a little sad. May I ask what it was?" I was almost blown away by how much Amy had taken notice of my disappointment in not, and probably never, being able to afford my own bike.

"There was this motorbike that caught my eye but at nearly ten grand, there's no way I'll ever afford it." I told them both.

"Ten grand?! Was the bike made of gold or something?" Nocturne questioned in shock.

"It would've been millions if it was. Think of Shadow's bike but dark purple with a dark red lightning bolt on either side." I explained since she had a very good idea of what Shadow's bike looked like. The chameleon thought about it then grinned and nodded in satisfaction.

"Sound nice, wish I had seen it."

"_You would have if you weren't trashing someone else's."_ I thought in annoyance. Before my oncoming grouchy mood took a foothold, Tails came in with a tray of various different snacks, including cake which Charmy was very excited about. Espio, being the only one to notice besides me, had to calm the insect down. Another smile made me look like a spying creep before getting some food and sitting in the corner to eat. Tails flipped the TV on but kept it at a low volume so that we could all continue to chat. Sonic came in shortly after and joined us. After getting himself acquainted with Nocturne, he turned to the rest of the Chaotix and talked.

"We really don't get to see you guys all that much. How've you all been?" Vector was the first to answer.

"Work has been slow as usual but we're all ok."

"I hope things pick up." Tails added.

"Yeah me to. Getting the bills paid is our biggest worry." Vector told him with a noticeable frown. My stomach sunk, I thought we were doing fine but only now did I just realise that the 2000 rings we got would only take us so far before we were back where we started. It was the constant struggle of everyday life that would fuel my depression and no matter what world I ran away to, that struggle would always follow.

"What about you Espio?" Sonic asked as he turned to the chameleon who was standing in the corner with his arms folded, just like he did at home. "You haven't talked much since you got here and we never get to talk at all. How have you been?" The blue blur seemed genuinely interested in the reptilian's well-being but even then, starting a conversation with the guy was rare and for good reason. I had assumed that he still didn't like being around too many people but he was generally quiet anyway. I wondered if Sonic even understood this fact about him.

"I've been fine." He stated but Sonic couldn't just leave it at such a simple answer.

"Well, what have you been up to?" The hedgehog asked.

"The usual."

"And that would be?" I stepped in, fearing that Espio would suddenly pull out a kunai and slice his throat despite it going against his character in every way.

"Some things are best left alone Sonic, no need to worry about him." The hedgehog nodded in return with a smile. I hoped he understood.

"He just tends to stand around and watch the rest of us." Charmy suddenly popped up much to the irritation of the chameleon who was at the centre of the subject. I glanced at Amy who was rolling her eyes whilst the bee spoke. I should've been given a medal for somehow holding back the urge to slam her through a window.

"_She's just rolling her eyes. Why am I getting so wound up by this?"_ I thought. Anyone else wouldn't have cared but for me, a deadly cauldron of magma was gently nudging me in the direction towards violence.

"That doesn't surprise me. Whatever keeps him happy." Sonic finished but he sounded as if it bothered him. Espio on the other hand was glaring, not at anyone in particular, he was just glaring. I went back to wondering why he came along at all. Perhaps Vector forced him? But that seemed out of character for the croc, he was more of a gentle giant. "What about you Charmy? You been good?" The bee was rocking back and forth with anticipation as if knowing that he would be asked.

"I've been great!" He exclaimed with a wide smile. "Arby plays games with me all the time and she reads me a bed time story every night!" He said that with so much pride that I nearly welled up. Everyone else seemed surprised by this, even more so when the bee got up and hugged my arm. I'm pretty sure I heard a faint 'aww' from Tails whilst I got a funny look from Nocturne. Suddenly, Amy approached us both. I was quick to be on guard around her. She was the kind of girl that would say anything if she wanted to.

"So, you two _really_ do get on then?" She sounded as if the very concept was unheard of and it prompted me to venture further.

"Of course we do. Why do you ask?"

"I honestly thought you were kidding. The kid is so annoying that I'm surprised anyone gets on with him at all. I know Cream does but she's usually so tolerant that-"

"Hold it." Everyone, including Espio, looked stunned by Amy's unexpected comment and I was certainly not going to let it slip by. One look at Charmy's saddened face gave me the courage to stand up for him. With my arm, I gently nudged the child behind me, got up and took a step towards the pink mammal. She of course stepped backwards in response; I knew she didn't expect me to retaliate and by the excited look on Nocturne's face, she didn't expect it either. "You do not say that, especially when he is right there. I don't care what you think about him, I think he is the kindest and most genuine little guy I've ever met so if you think I'm just going to stand here while you talk trash about a six year old then you have another thing coming." To my own surprise, I didn't yell. My voice instead was unnaturally calm but it had an edge, a threatening edge. My multi-coloured eyes were so focused on Amy's green ones that I almost forgot everyone else was there. That is until Nocturne decided to break the uneasy silence.

"Yeah! Go Arby!" She yelled from the back of the room, gaining herself a few annoyed looks from the others.

"Apologise." I said to reinforce my point.

"What?" She replied. The room was now focused back on us.

"Apologise to him. Now." My cold stare didn't budge and in the end, she knelt down to him and did as she was told.

"I'm sorry Charmy. I didn't mean what I said."

"Really?" Charmy asked with a clear nervousness. She nodded and smiled at him before getting up and looking back at me.

"Thank you." I said with the same voice. She said nothing else and carefully moved away from me. "Oh and Amy?" I called out one last time. She quickly turned as if she would be punished if she didn't. "Let's not have this happen again. I don't tolerate bullies." She swallowed hard and I was sure everyone else noticed. Was she really that scared of me? The hedgehog was quick to return to her corner next to Nocturne who was nodding with satisfaction at my actions.

A sudden news flash came on the TV. Tails turned it up so that we could all listen.

*_NEWS FLASH!*_

"Reports are coming in of Eggman entering the city in a giant mech! Civilians are running for their lives as the madman heads towards the central museum, the same location where a robbery took place recently."

"We stopped them actually." Nocturne told everyone whilst I looked down remembering other events of that night.

"The authorities say that he is after the one remaining Chaos Emerald that is being housed there and are now pursuing him as we speak. We now go live to our chopper who is reporting from above the museum."

"Come on Tails! He isn't going to get that emerald while I'm around!" Sonic announced as both he and Tails rushed out the door. Amy was quick to follow but part of me was sure she just wanted to get away from me.

"Come on Arb!" A certain dark chameleon shouted excitedly. "We stopped the guy before, we can do it again."

"Nocturne, I appreciate the fact that you're crazy but we cannot take down whatever that spider-looking thing was!" The 'mech' he was commandeering was more of a giant spider tank with two cannons on the front just below the cockpit.

"Who says we can't? Do you really want Sonic taking all of the glory yet again or do you want to at least do something instead of sitting here feeling sorry for yourself?" She had a point. I had never felt more alive than when we took down Eggman the first time but he was just in his little hovercraft back then. Despite the possibility of death, I threw my fears aside and wanted to make a difference, even if it was small.

"You don't think you're going alone do ya?" A large croc said from behind me. Espio was stood on his left, looking very determined I might add, and to his right was Charmy with a warm smile from the incident just now. I smiled at each of them, even Espio who didn't return it. We all ran out the door with Cream, Vanilla and Cheese waving us off.


	12. Not Good Enough

**Hey everyone! I've had a productive week in the sense that I'm more caught up with coursework now than I have been the rest of the year. That is basically what I have been doing the entire week so I've been kept busy. Apart from that, life has been the usual. **

**I want to say that things are good and everything is fine but it just isn't. It's hard trying to get through each and every day, for me at least, knowing that everything I do will never be good enough. It's crushing me to say the least but with society these days, I'm forced to put on a front and say that I'm fine to keep everyone else happy and to stop the questions.**

**One day, perhaps I will have the strength to say that enough is enough... but that isn't today. For now, fan fiction, this story, is where my effort is placed (aside from looking after the animals of course).**

**So anyway, here's a chapter for you. I hope you all enjoy it and I hope your week has been good :)**

**See you all in 7 days, perhaps your week will fly by so that mine can to.**

**Arby xx**

* * *

I forced myself to ignore the ache in my legs knowing that getting to the museum was more important. I glanced to my right only to be stunned by Nocturne who was effortlessly running across the sides of buildings. I envied her; she had all these abilities while I was pretty sure I had none. By the time we got there, the fight had well and truly begun with Sonic once again taunting the doc whilst Tails was lending a hand.

"Arby, you go inside and secure that emerald! If you've got it then he can't get it, understood?" Vector told me.

"What about you guys?" I asked with concern.

"We'll help Sonic and Tails to keep Eggman distracted. Don't worry, we'll be alright. Now go! You don't have a lot of time!" With a serious nod, I ran inside the museum with Nocturne close behind.

"I take it you're coming to?" I questioned.

"You never know when you might need some help. Better to be safe." I didn't think anything would be in here but she made a good point. If something were to attack me then how would the others know? At least with her here I would have a bit of backup.

Back outside, the doctor was putting up a good fight, not that Sonic was bothered by it.

"Come on doc, you can do better than that." He continued as if it was just one big game.

"Ugh! I will shut your mouth permanently even if it's the last thing I do!" Eggman yelled in frustration. He slammed his fist down on a button which should have fired missiles but instead, explosives on the side were triggered and blew half the tank to oblivion. Everyone watched in horror as the multiple blasts caused the mechanical arachnid to crash down onto the museum.

"No!" Everyone yelled in unison at the sight.

"Espio! Get in there!" Vector ordered whilst pointing to the now crushed museum. The chameleon nodded and ran with haste to where the croc had directed him. He was forced to head in through the back as the tank had completely blocked the front. Unfortunately for him, the giant spider was the least of his problems. As he was about to enter, he felt something grab his tail and force him into the filthy, brick wall behind him. He slumped down in a daze before looking up to see none other than the Ultimate Life Form himself.

"Shadow!" He growled but the hedgehog continued as if he had said nothing at all.

"You've done enough, chameleon." He stated in a calm yet deadly tone, like a slow-acting poison. He leapt up off of the ground and landed behind the hedgehog, about to attack him but Shadow's reflexes were unmatched and he grabbed the chameleon's arm before it made contact with his head. The hedgehog swung him around and slammed him into the wall again, this time with far more force. A sharp pain shot through the reptilian's back as he slumped to the ground once again. How could he be brought down so easily? Out of nowhere, an unmistakable bat landed next to the ninja. He tried to get up and defend himself from the two unexpected arrivals but found himself pinned by the much stronger hedgehog. "You are not going anywhere." His gaze locked precisely onto him. Espio tried to think of a way out but found himself thrown to the ground instead.

"What are you doing here?!" The reptile demanded but the hedgehog obviously kept his intentions hidden.

"That is a story for another day; in the meantime, you are coming with us." He lifted his foot, about to deliver a powerful kick to knock him out but paused. Rouge gave the dark hedgehog a sceptical look.

"You ok?" She asked with some concern in her voice although not much. The black hedgehog stared at the other male who looked up at him. For a split-second, Espio could see hesitation and he hoped that Shadow wouldn't go through with it, but the moment was quick to pass.

"Fine." He stated bluntly before slamming his foot to the back of his head.

_A few minutes earlier…_

"I'm glad you know where it is." I said with embarrassment as we both ran towards where the emerald was being kept. Nocturne chuckled.

"How could I forget? Staring at that flawless, purple glow for hours has burnt it into my mind." It was an odd comment, even from Nocturne but I was quick to forget about it. We entered the room and sighed in unison at the sight of the emerald. It was still there and still untouched.

"Thanks Chaos, alright then. You go check that the back entrance is clear and I'll-" Nocturne's sentence halted as did my movements. Violent rumbles could be felt under our feet and they were quickly getting worse. Barely having time to comprehend what was going on, Eggman's spider tank suddenly crashed through the ceiling, causing huge pieces of debris to come hurtling towards us.

"Shit!" We both yelled in panic. Nocturne dove out of the way but I didn't have her abilities. Everything seemed to stand still, my body was cemented into position and I could not move even if death was staring me in the eyes. The only thing I managed was to shield my face with my arm before the roof caved in upon me. Nocturne stayed down until she was sure that everything had calmed. Her bright, almost glowing green eyes slowly looked around what was left. There was a gaping hole in the roof that the strong sunlight was casually shining through. The way out had been entirely cut off by the pile of concrete that had gathered. Studying the aftermath, her gaze landed upon some upturned quills with stained red fur. Without saying a word, Nocturne approached the unconscious hedgehog with an emotionless expression. She knelt down and studied the part of her that wasn't buried beneath the rubble. There was a clear open wound to her head that was bleeding heavily; she could only guess what the rest of her looked like.

"Funny how this keeps happening to you." She whispered before getting up. Nocturne glanced back and forth at the gap in the ceiling and her half-buried sister. "But this is what you wanted right?" In the end, she swiftly left the museum through the roof and ran.

Back outside, Vector and Charmy were getting anxious. Espio hadn't come back and Nocturne and Arby were nowhere to be seen.

"Alright, I'll be the one to say it." Vector spoke catching the bee's attention. "He's been in there for a long time."

"Don't worry boss!" Charmy said with enthusiasm that would be considered inappropriate. "The ambulance people are here so everything will be fine." This only made Vector worry further.

"I appreciate your positivity little guy, but not all of us can afford hospital bills. Especially if we have three of them." He paused and thought whilst the small insect watched his every move. "Come on kid, were not just gonna stand here. We're gonna get them out."

"You got it!" Charmy and Vector then headed the same way Espio did and got in through the back entrance. Their path was relatively clear seeing as the collapse was at the front but getting into the exact room proved to be a harder task as the doorway was blocked. Charmy flew around, but it didn't take much to notice the overwhelming hole above them. "Uhh Vec?" The croc looked to see the bee pointing up.

"Alright Charms, you think you can still carry me?" The bee laughed at the question.

"I used to carry you and Espio all the time. This'll be easy!" He hovered in the air until Vector held onto his feet. The bee lifted the much larger reptile and placed him on the roof of the museum.

"Good work Charmy! Now we need to get in and find them." They both nodded and treaded carefully upon the now unstable remains. The room was easy to find since it was next to the corridor that they were just in, it was the dangers of falling that slowed them slightly. They climbed down the pile of concrete and into the dusty room. They couldn't see anyone.

"There's no one here Vec." Charmy pointed out but the crocodilian wasn't convinced.

"We can't say that until we've searched. Just look around and underneath stuff and yell if you find anything." Vector told him. Charmy began searching all corners until a disturbing sight caught his worried eyes.

"Vector!" The bee yelled only minutes later. His voice trembled which caused Vector to worry. He rushed over to see what Charmy had found. "Look…" The child whispered as tears fell from his eyes. Vector's jaw dropped at the sight of Arby, who looked to be in horrible condition.

"Arby? Arby!" Vector shook her but there was no response whatsoever.

"Arby… no…" Tears fell endlessly from the distraught child who feared the worst. Vector took one look at him to see that he needed comforting. He knelt down in front of him and gently placed his hands on his shoulders. His voice was calm in order to also calm the scared 6 year old.

"We have to get this stuff off of her. I'll move the debris while you carefully slide her out, ok?" Charmy nodded and wiped his tears so that he could see. The large crocodile quickly removed the concrete that had the hedgehog trapped and Charmy was able to bring her out onto the open floor. She was completely unconscious and the wound on her head wasn't getting any better. "Where the hell is Espio and Nocturne?" Vector wondered with both anger and concern.

"And the Chaos Emerald." Charmy added.

"Forget about that for now. We need to take Arby home." Charmy flew them both back into the corridor then Vector carried the injured hedgehog as they both made their way back to the Chaotix.

_Meanwhile…_

"You think he'll be alright down there?" Rouge asked as she sat on the kitchen counter with one leg over the other.

"He'll be just fine." Shadow stated plainly. The bat had noticed his odd behaviour since he hesitated on knocking the chameleon out back at the museum and wanted to know why.

"You haven't been yourself since earlier. Something on your mind?"

"Why would there be?" The dark hedgehog crossed his arms as he went to stare out the window.

"Don't be like that, you can talk to me. I won't bite." Shadow rolled his eyes whilst his back was facing her. "You and I both know you didn't want to hurt Espio back there." She couldn't see it, but Shadow's breathing had quickened. Suddenly, a certain striped chameleon barged through the door.

"Damn! What a day!" She exclaimed. Despite being ridiculously irritated by her, Shadow was secretly thankful that she chose now to interrupt; but that didn't mean barging in without knocking was ok.

"Weren't you ever taught to knock?" He asked sternly.

"Knock on what?" Nocturne replied earning herself a loud growl.

"Welcome back sugar." Rouge greeted.

"Hey there sexy." Nocturne teased with a wink giving Shadow the sudden urge to run to the bathroom, but he held it back… for now.

"What are you doing here?" The male hedgehog growled before things went a bit too far.

"Oh right…" After giving a playful grin to the bat, Nocturne laid down on the couch and explained her reasons for showing up unannounced. "I have something you might want."

"And that would be?" Shadow asked, prompting her to continue.

"Firstly, did you get him?" Nocturne asked in return.

"Yes, we got him."

"Where is he?" The chameleon was now sat up and staring at Shadow.

"We're not telling you." A small smirk was present on the black mammal's face whilst Nocturne's had now vanished.

"Why not?!"

"Because you'll go find him and blow your cover." The reptile sat back. He had a good point, if she showed up then Espio would tell the others of her darker double life. No matter how much she wanted to taunt him whilst he was down, she couldn't risk her exposure.

"That's a fair point." She concluded before lying back down.

"Back to you, you said you had something we wanted?" Shadow reminded her. With a quick return of her grin, she got up and revealed a glowing purple gem which was sat comfortably in the palm of her hand.

"Is that?" Rouge tried to say but got lost in the gems magnificent beauty.

"How did you get that?" Shadow asked.

"Pretty straight forward. Everyone else was so focused on stopping Eggman that they completely forgot why they were stopping him to begin with."

"What about the Chaotix?" Shadow continued.

"They were outside at the time and Arby got trapped when Eggman's big toy crashed on top of us."

"So… what happened to her?" Rouge added with one brow lowered. Nocturne shrugged.

"I don't know. She was unconscious when I left."

"You didn't help her?" Shadow's face looked both confused and angry at the same time.

"Well, no. Why?"

"Wow, you really are a heartless one aren't you?" Rouge said as she approached the chameleon and placed a hand on her shoulder. They both looked at the only male in the room whose face was suddenly very hard to read. Neither of them could tell if he was angry, sad, shocked or a mix of all three.

"Anyway…" Nocturne spoke, interrupting the sudden silence. "Where should I put this thing?" She asked but the hedgehog stopped her.

"I don't think so. Hand it over." He demanded.

"Why?"

"You seriously think I'm going to tell you where we keep the emeralds?"

"Yes?" Nocturne said bluntly but Shadow simply shook his head. With a huff, she handed the mammal the emerald who then went into his room. "He keeps them in his room?"

"Of course not. That would be far too easy." Rouge told her.

"Then where?"

"I don't know. He won't tell me either, he thinks I'll just steal them."

"Well… he's right." Nocturne smirked.

"How do you know so much about us?" The bat asked with her voice more seductive than usual. Apparently Shadow leaving the two alone wasn't a good idea.

"That's for me to know and for you to find out." Nocturne teased.

"I'm sure I'll get it out of you somehow."

Meanwhile, Shadow was in what looked like a basement. It was dark, damp and cold despite the temperatures outside. Small cells lined the far wall; they were all empty apart from one. The hedgehog approached the only occupied cell and stared at the unconscious reptile that was restrained by his wrists inside.

"I know you're awake." Shadow said. The chameleon kept his gaze to the bland, grey floor beneath him, but he did speak.

"What is it that you want?" His voice lacked any emotion.

"Merely to keep you out of the way until our job is done." The hedgehog told him. Espio didn't say anything else which caused something to tug at him. "I didn't want to do this to you, but you left me with no choice."

"If you really didn't want to do this then you wouldn't have. It is that simple. You are a hedgehog who does what he wants, when he wants. That much I know. You did want to do this, so don't lie to me." The chameleon was now staring back at him with eyes that to Shadow, seemed broken. "Do what you want. I'm powerless to stop you anyway." Shadow's stomach sank at Espio's attitude. He had never known the ninja to give up so easily and accept a fate that the hedgehog knew wouldn't befall him.

"You will not be hurt while you are here. Just don't expect me to go soft on you."

"I never did." Espio replied. Shadow turned away but said one last thing.

"You did at one point." Espio's entire body stiffened. He knew exactly what he was talking about and shook with absolute rage that Shadow would use it against him. The hedgehog then walked a few steps before Chaos Controlling out of the basement.

"Bastard!"


	13. Give it Time

**Happy Saturday! I'm feeling a lot better this week. There's no particular reason for it, all the same problems are still there, I just am.**

**Anyway I won't go on and on about it today and instead I will just let you get to the chapter. I'd like to thank you all for sticking with this for as long as you have. I appreciate all the reviews, favourites and follows so much even if I don't show it often! :)**

**I hope you all enjoy and I will see you next week! Have a nice day/night wherever you are!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

Hours passed and the sky was now taking on the colours that meant a storm was on the way. Vector had been at his desk trying to figure out what might have happened for Nocturne and Espio to disappear. His patience was wearing thin as he thought of every possible scenario. With a frustrated sigh, he looked up from his desk and to the couch. Arby hadn't woken up but what made the stressed croc smile was Charmy, who was curled up asleep next to her. What also added to the scene was that the insect child was also wearing her headphones on top of his helmet. They were scratched up but working otherwise as he could hear music playing out of them. Deciding to take a quick break before his mind imploded, Vector got the blanket that was hungover the back of the couch and carefully placed it over them both. An extremely saddened look came over him as he watched the silent duo. The sound of relentless rain soon came crashing down onto the Chaotix roof which only made him feel worse. It was odd, he felt regretful as if he could've done something more despite knowing he couldn't have known the outcome. His head shook slowly before he got up and began walking back to his desk.

_Meanwhile…_

"Are you still here?" Shadow asked with annoyance as he walked out of his room. He didn't get a response. Instead, he got a middle finger which slowly rose from the couch. With a growl, he stormed over and looked down at the chameleon who was lazing there. "You've got some nerve." He said sternly. Nocturne grinned but kept her eyes closed.

"Lighten up, buttercup. I'm not doing anything." She said casually.

"You shouldn't be here. You don't live here. Go home." The reptile opened her eyes and for the first time since joining them, became serious.

"Go back there? Shadow, you're smart. Vector probably thinks that both Espio and I are missing. With that in mind, who do you think he'll question?" He exhaled loudly.

"Dammit… so what are you going to do? There's no way I'm letting you stay here."

"Why not?" Nocturne was sat up now and looking up at Shadow who was leaning over the back of the couch.

"I'll be blunt with you; you are _the_ most annoying person I have ever met."

"Really? Even over Sonic?" The black hedgehog took a second to think.

"He may be an exception but you are damn close." With a loud sigh, Nocturne got up and stood next to him. Her eyes were sternly locked onto his but he stood his ground.

"I'll admit it; I'm a pain in the ass. I do that on purpose. Do you want to know why that is?" Shadow didn't say anything and just stared at her with a careless expression. She continued nonetheless. "It's simple. I couldn't care less about what anyone thinks of me."

"Not even your sister?" Shadow asked on impulse.

"Things are complicated with her. Let's just leave it at that." She told him.

"Where's Rouge?" He asked, obviously changing the subject.

"She went to go wind up Knuckles. According to her, the Master Emerald is a must for whatever you two are up to." Shadow rolled his eyes. He only needed the 7 Chaos Emeralds and knew that she was only going there to piss Knuckles off.

"I'd rather that than what I walked in on." Nocturne noticed the hedgehog shudder out of the corner of her eye. She chuckled under her breath.

"Still haunting you is it? Come on, we weren't that bad."

"Not at the time, but I do not want to think about where that could've gone if I hadn't come back." Nocturne only shrugged, not bothered if he had come back or not.

"Fine, how about I tone it back a little?" Shadow was surprised by her suggestion and thought that there may have been something else to it.

"Why would you do that?"

"Like you say, we've got a job to do right? I may not know your reasons but destroying museums is a lot more fun." Shadow grinned, perhaps now she would be bearable and they could make progress.

"If you mean what you say and stick to it, then I'll let you stay here but one wrong move chameleon…"

"And my chameleon _friend_ gets it?" A wide grin was upon her as she repeated Shadow's words from their first meeting. Even the Ultimate Lifeform chuckled a little.

"Speaking of him, I'd better go see if he's ok." Shadow began heading for the door but Nocturne's next words halted him.

"Isn't this the third time you've checked up on him now? It's not as if he's going anywhere."

"I know, but you can never be too careful." He then swiftly left before the chameleon could question him further. She tilted her head to the side as she thought about what Shadow may have been hiding, if he was hiding anything at all.

"_Yeah right."_ She pushed those thoughts aside and began to raid his very fancy fridge.

Back at the Chaotix HQ, Vector had fallen asleep at his desk. The power had long since gone out from the storm and the only thing lighting the room was a single candle which the croc had next to him. He was suddenly startled awake when the door slammed open. Charmy also jumped up in a daze, not knowing what was going on.

"What the?!" The croc said in fright. He assumed it was just the wind as he saw no one there but in a few seconds, a shivering chameleon revealed himself. "Espio!" He exclaimed as he rushed over to his freezing friend. Vector closed the door before guiding the ninja to the empty couch and wrapping the spare blanket around him. "Are you alright? What happened?" The croc quickly questioned.

"J-just g-give me a m-m-minute." Espio stuttered uncontrollably. Vector nodded and got Charmy to grab a towel from the bathroom to help dry him off.

Roughly half an hour later, the smaller reptile was sat with a warm cup of tea that Vector had kindly made him. His shivering had almost completely stopped and he now felt ready to explain the events that unfolded as the other two eagerly listened. He told them how he was about to get into the museum through the back until Shadow and Rouge attacked and took him.

"What the hell?! Why would they take you?" Vector asked with both confusion and anger.

"He said it was to keep me out of the way." Espio said repeating Shadow's words.

"It clearly didn't work. How did you escape?" Charmy asked.

_Flashback_

Shadow had long since left and Espio was only now just beginning to calm down.

"_I have to get out of here. Come on Espio, focus!"_ He ordered himself in his head. His eyes had adjusted to the room that was being painfully lit by one flickering light bulb. He scanned the room as best he could and noticed a set of keys hung on the wall at the opposite end of the room. His tail wouldn't reach them but his tongue easily could.

"I haven't done this in a long time." He said to himself but knew he had no other options at this point. Espio lined himself up as best he could. Only his wrists were restrained which meant his feet were free. He had to be in the perfect position so that he could get the keys through the bars. Once he felt like he could go no further, he lifted his head and fired his tongue. The keys were easily lifted and came flying back at him, which he expertly caught with his teeth. Espio couldn't help but grin at his abilities before using his prehensile tail to help unlock his shackles. Once free, he opened his cell and locked it behind him. "I think I'll keep these." He said with a hope that Shadow wouldn't imprison anyone else before going invisible and leaving.

_Present Day_

"That's so cool!" Charmy said out of admiration.

"So then, where's Nocturne?" Vector asked him.

"Why are you asking me?" Espio replied.

"In case you haven't noticed, she isn't here." The larger reptile told him.

"I wouldn't notice even if she was here." Espio commented with a smirk. Charmy found it funny but Vector wasn't in the mood to joke around.

"Not now Espio."

"She does this all the time. Why are you worried now?" The chameleon wondered.

"Because we found Arby half-buried in the museum on her own and I know Nocturne went in with her."

"You think she left her there?" Vector shrugged.

"I don't want to think that but that's what it looks like." The croc concluded. Espio then got up and knelt down in front of Arby, studying the wound to her head.

"She should be in a hospital Vector." He said whilst looking up sternly at him.

"You know we can't afford that Espio. Look, you have medical training right?"

"I only know first aid, I'm no surgeon! What if this is serious?!" Espio had raised his voice but wasn't yelling. Vector on the other hand, wasn't quite as quiet.

"What do you expect me to do Espio?! Magically make her better or something?!"

"Guys! Stop!" Charmy begged as he flew between them before things got worse. They both caught sight of the 6 year old's worried expression and knew turning on each other would solve nothing.

"My apologies. What do you need me to do?" Espio asked in a far softer tone than usual.

"There's a med kit in the top cupboard in the kitchen. Just do what you can Es, thank you." The chameleon nodded and retrieved the kit so that he could check Arby's head wound to ensure to some extent that she wasn't in any danger. As he worked with the candle now next to him so that he could see, Charmy asked him a question.

"I thought you hated her?" Espio stopped momentarily but continued again as he spoke.

"Regardless of my feelings, no one should ever be left behind."

"But we don't know that." The bee told him.

"It's Nocturne we're talking about here. She obviously didn't go to get help did she? Otherwise you would have seen her plus the fact that she isn't here now. It's clear enough to me that she abandoned Arby and left her to die." The statement was cold but they both agreed. "That's all I can do for now. It won't get infected at least." Espio announced as he tidied up the medical supplies and sat back on the other couch.

"Thanks Espio." Vector smiled at him while Espio only nodded. A sudden silence came over all of them. Vector glanced around the room, Charmy twiddled his thumbs and Espio kept his eyes on Arby in case she woke up.

"So…" Charmy began, breaking the silence. "What do we do now?"

"Well, we know what happened… somewhat, but we still don't know where the Chaos Emerald went." Vector explained.

"Shadow has it." Espio said out of nowhere.

"What?! How do you know it was the one at the museum?" The young bee questioned.

"It was purple." He stated dryly.

"Oh… hehe." Charmy giggled in embarrassment.

"Yep… that's the one." Vector confirmed. "Terrific, how many does he have?" A hint of sarcasm in the croc's voice.

"At least three, but he could have more." Espio told him.

"He could have all seven!" Charmy panicked.

"Relax Charms, if he had all seven then the entire city would know about it." Vector said with a chuckle. The bee jumped when he felt the couch cushions shift as if someone was moving.

"Arby?" He said which caused the other two to gather around her.

Did a sledge hammer smack me in the head or something? That's what it felt like as my head was pounding. It was as if something was trying to break out of my skull. I groaned in pain before slowly opening my eyes. Everything was blurred to begin with but the first thing I noticed was a purple figure crouched in front of me.

"Es?" I said quietly but apparently I had hit a nerve already.

"My name is Espio. You shall address me as such." He said with a slight growl. I saw a green arm nudge him in the shoulder, which I knew was Vector.

"Sorry…" I whispered, instantly wanting to cry but more out of pain than anything else.

"Are you ok?" A small yellow and black blur came into view. He sounded incredibly nervous so I tried my best to reassure him but it wasn't easy in my current state.

"I'm fine Charmy." I wanted to say more but I just didn't have the energy.

"Do you remember anything?" Vector asked. I couldn't think about a thing with this headache so I slowly shook my head.

"She's only just woken up. Give her some time." Espio told him. "Are you in any pain?" He then asked me.

"A ton." I groaned.

"Where?"

"Just a migraine. Nothing else." The ninja nodded to Vector who got some headache pills and a glass of water to try and ease the pain.

"Take these and then try to rest ok? We can figure everything out tomorrow." Vector said in a soft and caring voice. It instantly calmed me and soon enough, I was asleep.

_Meanwhile…_

Nocturne was watching TV with her feet upon the glass table. Many thoughts were travelling through her head and she laughed at each and every one of them. Suddenly, Shadow Chaos Controlled into the room, causing the chameleon to jump.

"Do you have to do that?" She complained but the hedgehog ignored her and got straight to the point.

"He's gone!" He told her.

"Who? Espio? Are you fucking kidding me?! How?!" Nocturne demanded.

"How should I know?" He growled back at her.

"What the hell are we gonna do? He'll tell the others everything."

"I need those emeralds before that happens which means a scouting run for you." She sighed in annoyance but anything was better than being bored in an apartment.

"Alright, I'm up for that. Where should I go?" Shadow got out a map of the city which had various markings on it to show where Shadow and Rouge had already been. He pointed to one of the farthest parts away where those that had power or a lot of money lived. Nocturne grinned evilly but Shadow was quick to stop her imagination.

"Remember, you're only looking for the Chaos Emeralds. No crazy stunts or anything like that. Understood?"

"Oh come on! I can't even burn one of them down? Please?" She begged but one glare and a shake of the head told her 'no'. She huffed under her breath before nodding.

"You have until dawn. Do not let me down." Shadow ordered.

"Relax Shadow, but one thing before I go. How many emeralds do you have? So I know how many to keep an eye out for."

"That's not important. Just look for one, now go." She grunted but then winked at him before leaving the apartment. The hedgehog then marked the map where Nocturne was going and then circled one large complex which was just on the edge of the city. It was the only place they hadn't looked yet but he knew at least one emerald would be there.

"_I'll need the other two for that."_ Shadow thought as he glared at the area known as G.U.N. HQ. _"It's only a matter of time now. Then we'll see what unfolds."_ With that, he went to contact Rouge and inform her of what was about to happen.


	14. Other Worldly Limits

**Hello everyone! It's late but I got it done. How have you all been? My week has been the usual, play games and feed animals. Sage has started shedding again and Zeus is being Zeus by pushing his water dish to where I can't reach it. Such a good snake.**

**I have been speed running though, for those who don't know, it's where you get through a level or game as quick as possible. I tried my hand at one level and nearly got the World Record (I was two seconds off!) but since I have no hardware to record it, I can't prove it... which sucks.**

**Anyway, that's about it. Have a great weekend and I'll see you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

She couldn't have looked more out of place if she tried. The last thing any of the wealthy people expected was a black and red chameleon skipping down the street in the middle of a thunderstorm. She was only doing it out of sheer boredom as she had no clue where in the district a Chaos Emerald could be, assuming there was going to be one at all.

_"If the museum is anything to go by then it may as well be in the middle of the street."_ She thought with a smirk. One mansion in particular stood out from the others. It had a long, curved road leading up to it with enormous black, barred gates at either end. Many cars and limousines were pulling up at the front door with well-dressed people stepping out and walking inside. How could curiosity let her miss this? _"I'm allowed a little fun right? I'm sure Shadow wouldn't mind." _Nocturne hid in the neatly cut hedges that were along each side of the driveway and made her way up to the entrance. A guard was at the front, greeting everyone as they walked inside.

"Good evening." He would say in a well-spoken voice as he stood there in his jet black tuxedo. "Welcome to the Mayor's Ball. Please make your way through the doors and into the grand hall."

"Are you serious?" Nocturne whispered with a childish giggle. "I've just hit the jackpot." She studied her surroundings, knowing that she couldn't just waltz her way through the front door for obvious reasons. Many of the mansions windows were closed due to the storm so she couldn't get in that way. Regardless, she effortlessly climbed to the roof figuring that there may be vent access just like the museum. "Well would you look at that." She said as she made her way to one of the three vents that were present. "I'm right again as per usual." With yet another smug grin, she glided down the vent as if it were a water slide.

The crawl space was not only dark and cramped, but dusty as well. _"Why does anyone think it's a good idea to go into these things?"_ She wondered as she peered through each opening trying to figure out where in the mansion she was. _"Kitchen, nope. Dining room, nope. Bathroom, grim."_ It was like a maze but soon enough, she came across one corridor which she could not resist. It wasn't the corridor itself that was the source of her curiosity, but rather the huge, metal door at the end which told her only one thing.

"If there is a Chaos Emerald anywhere, then it's going to be here." She whispered with a sinister grin but now she had to figure out how to get in. There were two heavily built, armed guards stood in front of it to make sure certain unwelcome guests didn't try to get inside. The vent was also sealed off meaning that was a no go. The chameleon took a minute to think. Returning empty-handed was an option but she wanted to prove that she was more than capable of gathering powerful gems. Her piercing eyes glanced around hoping somehow that there would be an alternate route into the vault but her eyes landed on something she had completely forgotten about until now. On her wrist was the communicator that she had been given when she was meant to be spying on the Chaotix. "Oh buttercup." She sang quietly only to receive a response from the irritated individual on the other end.

"Don't call me that. Have you found the emerald or not?" Shadow hissed at her.

_"Back to normal I see."_ She thought. "No but I am in the vent outside of the Mayor's Vault. I just need a hand with getting inside." She heard a huff from the communicator. Nocturne couldn't tell if he was impressed or not but he definitely didn't expect her to be in a place like this, then again, he was probably expecting her to have it set alight by now.

"I can do you one better." He announced with a hint of smugness in his voice.

"What are you talking about?" Nocturne whispered with confusion but this time she didn't get an answer. "Shadow?" She questioned but again, silence. She nearly jumped out of her scales when a deafening boom rattled the vent around her. The guards that were outside the vault were running to check the cause of the sudden disturbance. A sinister grin grew as Nocturne realised what Shadow had done. After double checking that the corridor was clear, she hopped down trying to be as quiet as possible only to be greeted by an oddly content Shadow.

"Was that enough?" He asked with a grin.

"How kind of you to join me out here." She replied with a similar smirk. "Got bored did ya?"

"More or less; sitting and doing nothing gave me time to think, which is the last thing I want to do right now." The black mammal told her as he approached the door. A number pad was in the centre which told them both that it needed a passcode.

"No big deal, you can Chaos Blast."

"No, I may damage the emerald." Shadow told her but Nocturne wasn't as concerned.

"You really think that the emerald is just going to be right next to the door? Come on, if anything it'll be at the farthest part of the vault guarded by death lasers and trip mines." The hedgehog slowly turned to her with one brow raised. "What?"

"Never mind. You may want to stand back." He warned before pulling out an emerald of his own. It was glowing brightly, an indicator that another emerald was nearby. While his back was turned, Nocturne was gradually moving closer to him. For some strange reason, she wanted to know what it was like to be caught in an explosion and to have your life flash before your eyes. Anyone, including Shadow, would have seen her actions as ridiculously stupid but the chameleon in her words was experiencing every feeling that life in a physical form had to offer, even if it was extreme pain and burning. "Chaos Blast!" Shadow suddenly yelled as a red aura hurtled down the corridor, taking Nocturne with it. The hedgehog studied the door that was now off its hinges. He then turned to not only see a devastated corridor, but a black and red chameleon lying on the ground. Shadow didn't rush as he walked towards her and knelt down. "I thought I told you to stand back."

"But… that was… incredible." She groaned in her half-unconscious state. Rolling his eyes, Shadow carried her over his shoulder and retrieved the emerald which wasn't being guarded by death lasers and trip mines as Nocturne had hoped. Upon hearing lots of hurried footsteps heading towards them, the hedgehog was quick to Chaos Control back to the apartment.

_The Next Day_

I awoke to my head in pain. The sun was shining brightly through the window and onto me. I had to get up just to stop myself from burning alive. On the table I noticed a glass of water which I quickly took several gulps of.

"Afternoon." I heard a familiar voice say from his desk.

"Afternoon?" I questioned.

"Yeah, you've been out for a while. How ya feelin'?"

"My head hurts." I said with a chuckle. My hand moved to where the pain was only to find some soft material there instead. "What happened to me?"

"So, you don't remember?" Vector asked but before I could answer, a deeper voice came from behind me.

"She just needs a bit of help." I was startled slightly, I had no idea Espio was there. I didn't notice Vector either until he started talking.

"Ok are you guys just appearing out of thin air or something?"

"No, you're just not all that observant." Espio stated boldly. Vector shook his head at him while I wasn't amused in the slightest.

"Thanks… thanks." I said sarcastically. I needed my energy to combat this headache; I didn't need him on my back as well. "Remember what exactly?" I questioned hoping that the topic would be changed.

"How you got your head injury." Espio explained. "Do you remember anything before now?" I thought hard but could only remember a dream I had.

"I had a dream of waking up and the three of you were crowding around me. You got really mad for some reason."

"That was not a dream." He stated bluntly. "You woke up last night. What I meant was do you remember anything before that?" Again I thought hard at what he wanted me to remember.

"Amy… she was picking on Charmy. I remember that." I told him.

"Anything else?"

"Uh… Eggman. We were all running somewhere. The emerald!" I suddenly jumped up. "Where is it?!"

"Shadow's got it." Vector told me.

"What?! I don't remember him being there."

"That's because he surprised us." Espio said whilst his gaze was noticeably elsewhere, as if the mention of the dark hedgehog was a distraction.

"He took Espio, who thankfully escaped obviously." Vector explained who then got up and sat next to me but something didn't add up in my head.

"Hold on, how did Shadow take the emerald if he was busy fighting you?" I asked. The smaller reptile looked at the taller one who simply shrugged his shoulders.

"She's got a point." Vector said, backing up my theory.

"Perhaps he went back for it, or someone else took it and gave it to him." Espio voiced his ideas whilst still thinking. "But who else could've taken it?"

"It would've had to be someone who was in there." Vector's thought seemed obvious but it was logical. The more I thought about it, the more I remembered the events that unfolded. If someone else did take it, then it would have been someone linked to Shadow and good at stealing.

"Rouge?!" I suddenly shouted but Espio was quick to point out the flaw.

"She was also busy pinning me to the ground." He grumbled, clearly not happy with how things turned out.

"Well… then who else is there?" I then halted remembering that I wasn't alone. "Oh no…" I whispered hoping that no one heard but of course, Espio being as observant as usual, questioned me.

"What is it?" I panicked. I couldn't just drop her in it, could I? Lying would be outright wrong but it might not have been her, but if not, then who?

"Vector, how did I get this injury again?"

"When Eggman's tank crashed on top of the museum. Charmy and I found you in the emerald room, with no emerald of course." I was hoping that he would prove my theory wrong but instead he just backed it up.

"No one else was with me?"

"Nope." He stated simply.

"You know something." Espio's words felt like a knife that he had just thrown at me. He knew he was right and I could just tell that on the inside, he was relishing in that fact. I looked to the floor and in defeat, finally said what I was thinking.

"Nocturne was with me." I couldn't see their reactions and I didn't want to. The guilt was bad enough.

"I should've known!" Espio growled as he stood up. "I knew she couldn't be trusted!"

"Espio for crying out loud." Vector said sternly so that his ego didn't explode.

"She's working for Shadow, do you not understand that? She has been undercover and took the emerald to give to him. She even left Arby to die for it! Is that not enough, Vector!?"

"You're lying." I said coldly. My eyes were still glued to the floor.

"Excuse me?" He hissed as if scolding a child. I slowly looked up and glared into his eyes. He glared back which in all honestly, was the most intimidating thing I had seen in my life.

"She wouldn't leave me like that."

"Is that so?" He said like me not listening to him was a challenge. "Tell me, do you see her here now?" Was that a smirk I saw upon his face?

"She could be out."

"Wrong!" My heart stopped for a split second as he yet again leapt at the chance to shoot me down. Before the urge to punch him got too strong, Vector shoved him aside and knelt down in front of me.

"I didn't wanna say anythin' because I know it'll upset ya, but since Espio so kindly brought it up…" He paused and gave a quick glare to the chameleon before looking back at me with a softer expression. "Nocturne did go in with ya but when we found ya, both she and the Chaos Emerald were gone. We haven't seen her since. I'm sorry Arb."

"Believe me now?" The ninja said from behind the croc.

"You're just loving this, aren't you?" I said bitterly.

"I've been saying this since the start. You two don't belong here and you are not to be trusted."

"Why is that huh Espio? Because we were human, is that it?" I had had enough. Every little comment, every funny look, all of it had built up and now, still with a headache, I was having no more of it. I got up and began walking towards him. The saws of my eyes were about ready to slice him in half as he stared defiantly back at me. Intimidation wouldn't save him this time. "Because we weren't born into the oh so perfect race of Mobians right? Yet saying that, who's the one taking the emeralds? Shadow I believe. Whilst we're on him, who was his jewel stealing friend again? Oh yeah, Rouge and what is she?"

"What is your point, hedgehog?" His words were like ice now, but I had the fire to melt them before they could touch me.

"My point is that I'm sick of your crap! I am done with being the sponge to all your little stabs! I'm no fan of humans either! I despise them even! But you've got your horn so far up your own ass that you don't give a shit do you?!" In my minutes of venting, I hadn't noticed that Espio had backed up and was now against the wall. Vector on the other hand was enjoying the sight of the reptile frozen in place. I was breathing heavily and I had even gotten a little dizzy from yelling so much. "Of all the people that wouldn't understand not knowing their place…" I paused as my expression softened into one of sadness and disappointment, my voice matched it. "… I never thought you'd be one of them." With tears quickly rising to my eyes, I turned and walked out of the Chaotix, gently closing the door behind me.

Espio's jaw hung whilst Vector stood with his arms folded and a grin across his snout. The chameleon caught sight of his face as he stormed to his room.

"I don't want to hear it." He growled at him before he slammed the door to his bedroom.

"I ain't sayin' anythin' Es!" He yelled with satisfaction but as expected, he didn't get a response.

_Meanwhile…_

"It doesn't seem that difficult." Nocturne commented as she sat on the kitchen counter with an ice pack on her head.

"Coming from the one who has a death wish." Shadow replied coldly.

"Again, why did you do it?" Rouge asked, still baffled at Nocturne's seemingly suicidal actions.

"Well why not? I've never been in an explosion before, never mind a freaking Chaos Blast!" She sounded as if she was proud, like the possibility of death didn't affect her at all.

"It's a miracle you weren't hurt." Rouge added, catching Shadow's attention.

"Yes, quite odd to say the least."

"I wasn't _that_ close, even if I wanted to be." Nocturne explained. The hedgehog shook his head and got back on topic.

"Anyway, are we all clear? I'll be the one getting the emerald. Rouge, you take care of the security systems. Cameras, alarms and anything else that could attract attention. Nocturne, you cause the distraction so that we have time to do what we need to, understood?"

"Can I least burn stuff down this time?" She pleaded as if her life depended on it.

"There is one rule Nocturne."

"But-" She was about to complain until she heard his next comment.

"No getting captured." A sly grin was on his face which was soon shared to the black and red reptile.

"I like how you think, Shadow."

"Now then, shall we?" He got out an emerald whilst the other two got close. "Chaos Control!" He shouted, making the trio disappear from the apartment. Next stop: G.U.N. HQ.


	15. Delay the Inevitable

**Hey everyone! It is Saturday yet again! This chapter went on longer than I had first thought, hence the slight delay but it is here nonetheless. I hope you all like it. You know what time it is now? 3am. Then again, I used to write this stuff till 6am so this isn't too bad. I'm finally caught up with coursework and I have now jinxed myself. Just wait, next week I'll be tearing my hair out about how behind I am.**

**Anyway, nothing exciting to report so I'll let you read the chapter. See you all next Saturday! :)**

**Arby xx**

* * *

I may have only been here once but I recognised it as if I had been here many times. The array of colours complemented by the gentle fragrance was enough to keep me there long into the night.

"_I yelled at him… no, I went ballistic. How could I? Is he going to kill me? Would he do that? I'm such an idiot!"_ I had been mentally punishing myself for some unknown amount of time. It was ironic how I chose such a hidden paradise to think myself to tears. I was sat in the same field I had come to after Nocturne and I had found out the reason for Espio's hatred and mistrust. I should have been proud of myself, right? I stood up to someone and defended myself. So why am I giving myself such a hard time? Why do I feel so guilty? He deserved it… right?

"Maybe my injury messed me up more than I thought." I said aloud in an attempt to find some explanation. "Maybe I should go and apologise? No! What am I thinking?! Ugh…" I exhaled in defeat and laid back to watch the stars, trying to force myself to feel better somehow.

"_I wonder how everyone on Earth is doing."_ I grinned at the thought, much to my own surprise. I had no idea of the time or the day since being so caught up in other things but despite that, I knew I would be at home allowing the hours to fly by whilst I played video games and wrote stories. Not the most exciting of lives but I was content with it. My eyelids gently came to a close without me noticing and I wasn't sure if I was just in a daydream or asleep entirely.

They shot open, allowing my multi-coloured eyes to realise that I wasn't where I was. It was nothingness again but it wasn't a plain white like before. Instead, it was a very dark purple, almost black, with some kind of static-like texture.

"_What happened to me?"_ I was more curious than scared as I slowly walked around.

"Arb? How did you get in here?" A voice questioned me. I turned to where it came from only to see none other than the dark mistress herself.

"N-Nocturne?" Confusion overcame me for a few brief moments as she took a step closer but kept her distance.

"Hey…" She said nervously. Thinking over her strange behaviour, it quickly came to me.

"Where the fuck have you been?!" I yelled at her whilst I defiantly stormed closer. Her instinct was to back away swiftly.

"Now now Arby, we can talk about this-"

"You fucking left me!" I screamed, cutting her off.

"I-I know what I did but-but I can explain!" She tried but there was no stopping me. Unlike Espio, I felt no guilt and I knew concrete that I had every right to act this way.

"You fucking better or your tail is being ripped off!" Her eyes widened at me, likely not expecting such aggression from someone who is usually silent 99% of the time.

"Someone's pissed today…" She mumbled but since I heard her anyway, I took one more fury-ridden step. "Ok ok look, I had to get the emerald out of there ok? That was our priority right? We couldn't let Eggman get it plus with the museum collapsing, I couldn't let it get damaged or destroyed. Perhaps I shouldn't have left you the way I did but I had reason for it!" She actually sounded convincing. If I didn't know better, then I would have believed her. A sinister smirk made its way across my face; unnerving Nocturne like there was no tomorrow. "W-what is it?"

"You know what? You're right. The emerald was more important and Eggman was right there so, I can understand. I was just left there in the moment but as you can see I survived so it wasn't all bad." Nocturne nodded along like some animal that had been trained out of fear.

"Y-yeah! You see? Everything's fine!"

"Exactly and after all, Shadow needed it more than we did." A clear growl became apparent. The chameleon froze and if I wasn't mistaken, I saw the colour in her scales drain.

"What?" She squeaked.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is that name familiar to you?" I walked smoothly until I was stood right in front of her. This time, she couldn't move away.

"N-no… why would it be?" Her voice had gotten noticeably quieter. Now was the time for confrontation. I wanted answers. I chuckled at first to throw her off-guard before quickly grabbing the horn at the front of her head and forcing her to stare into my unnaturally deadly eyes.

"Don't fucking lie to me." I whispered with nothing but venom. Nocturne shook. I could feel it. I couldn't lie, the power felt amazing but I was too furious to appreciate the feeling. "Talk. Now."

"About what?" No more stuttering this time; as if messing up at all would cost her life.

"About everything you have been doing. We know you're working either with him or for him. Either way, you are telling me everything." I demanded and she nodded very slightly within my grasp.

"Alright, alright!" She gave in. "I've been helping him to keep tabs on the Chaotix and to help gather the Chaos Emeralds."

"Why?" I growled.

"This may sound brief but… it's fun." I lowered a brow. Was that it?

"Fun?" I questioned.

"Yeah, it's exciting! Even right now we're… well I can't tell you that."

"What are you talking about? Are you awake right now?" She nodded.

"Why do you think I was so surprised when you popped up?" I couldn't get my head around how I got into her head, not to mention how she was both awake and in here at the same time.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Like I said, I can't tell you. Shadow's orders." Now I was suspicious.

"Since when do you 'obey' anyone? You only listen to yourself."

"While that is still true, I find Shadow far more interesting." I finally let her go whilst still questioning her.

"What's in it for you?"

"I just told you. The excitement, the fun. I am living my own life Arb and it doesn't include sitting in a house waiting desperately for work." I sighed and turned away.

"I don't get it Nocturne. I thought irritating Espio to no end entertained you?" She laughed at the thought before continuing.

"Don't get me wrong, I could do that 24/7 but I'd rather be making an impact on a larger scale. Besides, that uptight chameleon isn't worth my time."

"You know who you're aiding, right? Shadow isn't the good guy like he is on Earth." I tried to reason with her now that I had calmed enough to think.

"That doesn't matter to me. You can categorise my actions in any way you like. Good or evil, smart or stupid. Just know that I do what I want and I don't give a hoot to what anyone else thinks." I already knew that. She's told me that before, I just never realised how serious she took it.

"Will you come back?" Even I had to admit that the question came from nowhere. Deep down, I knew her answer already. Who am I to take her away from the life she's wanted?

"Arby…" She said uncharacteristically softly.

"I know." I replied sadly.

"Lighten up; I'm sure we'll be running into each other at some point." She winked playfully before beginning to walk away.

"So now what?" I asked, stopping her and forcing her to look at me. "You're just going to up and leave without a second thought? Are you expecting some kind of ending song and credits to roll?! Do I mean nothing to you?" It was a mix of anger and sadness. In truth, I didn't know how to feel, this had never happened to me before.

"Arby, never doubt that you're the only other thing in existence that I give a damn about." She paused and grinned evilly causing me to worry. "Just remember that I value myself more."

My body shook with the chills of both shock and cold. My eyes darted around, I had indeed woken up. I couldn't move to begin with. I was repeating what Nocturne had said. What was she going to do? I closed my eyes tightly and focused on my shivering to force my thoughts to the back of my head.

_Meanwhile…_

"Are you both ready?" Shadow asked the pair as they all hid some distance outside of the fenced off courtyard.

"As always." Nocturne bragged with absolute confidence.

"Just say the word, sugar." Rouge stated. Shadow nodded before quickly going over the plan.

"Rouge, you stick with me until we get inside. Then, you will go and deactivate any and all security measures. Nocturne, we won't move until you have the guard's attention. You think you can handle this? Remember, they are going to be armed."

"Shadow, you make it sound as if I'm going to be shot in the first five seconds. Relax, I'll show you that I'm capable of breaking some necks." They both gave the chameleon an odd look before Shadow snapped out of it.

"Well now is your chance to prove it. Whenever you're ready." He gestured towards the electrified fence with the two guards patrolling the front. They both had some kind of rifle but this didn't concern the chameleon at all. Her body instantly turned grey to match with the concrete ground and she approached the gate. Once the guards had their backs turned, Nocturne expertly hopped over the fence and broke the first guards' neck. The horrific crunch alerted the second guard to his now dead comrade and he turned with his gun pointed and ready to fire. Before he could so much a pull the trigger, Nocturne had taken the gun of her victim and mowed him down like a piece of raw meat.

"WHOOO!" She yelled at the top of her lungs. Shadow and Rouge were amazed at the sight and thought now would be a good time to infiltrate the base before things got chaotic. Endless yelling and gunshots could be heard as they both managed to get in through a side entrance.

"Rouge, I'll search for the Chaos Emerald. You try to find the security systems and shut them down." He reminded her.

"From what I've been able to gather, the emerald is a few levels underground. I don't have its exact location though." She told him.

"That's enough for me. Get going." They both sped off in separate directions, hiding every now and then as another squad ran down the corridor who they assumed were going after Nocturne. Rouge gracefully flew through each corridor, checking each room by kicking the door down. After frightening a few scientists and knocking them out, she came to the surveillance room. A few dozen screens lined the wall, one of which was keeping an eye on their prize.

"Shadow, the emerald is on the E Level, room 416. I can already see lasers and heavy mechs." The bat informed him.

"Understood. Turn those cameras off then find the security controls. I've already had three near misses from sentry turrets." Rouge had to chuckle at the thought of Shadow being startled. Nonetheless, she cut the power cables to the cameras and swiftly went on her way.

Shadow meanwhile, had made it four levels down which he assumed meant he was on Level D. There were less human guards and more robots and mechs due to G.U.N. liking to keep secrets. The Ultimate Lifeform huffed at their attempts to stop him and delivered a powerful kick to each one he ran into. It was more than enough as he walked casually until he found an elevator. To his annoyance, it required a key card to be operated. Thinking back to the Mayor's Vault, he weighed the pros and cons of Chaos Blasting the door. Chances are it would damage the elevator beyond repair meaning that he couldn't access the lower level at all.

"Rouge, come in." He spoke into his communicator.

"Go ahead." She whispered.

"I've found the elevator to E Level but it needs a key card." He informed her.

"Doesn't someone down there have one?" She asked.

"There's no one down here except robots." It went quiet for a few seconds before she responded.

"Hold on, I've taken down a few scientists up here. I'll check to see if they've got anything."

"Understood." The mammal finished before deciding to look around the floor. There didn't seem to be much at first, just a few storage rooms with mechanical parts. Shadow knew that all the top secret and therefore, interesting rooms would be on the floor below hence the tighter security.

"Sounds like Nocturne is still having fun outside." Rouge suddenly spoke on the comms.

"Is that so? What's going on?"

"Can't be certain but the gun fire and screaming could suggest a massacre." Shadow was silent, thinking over the situation in his head. "At least she's doing her job." Rouge finished.

"Yes, of course." They both went quiet after that until the bat spoke again.

"I've got a key card. Should I bring it to you?"

"Yes, you know where I am. We can Chaos Control out of here once we're done."

"Alright, on my way." Shadow leaned patiently against the elevator doors until an unexpected wave of robotic guards came from both ends of the corridor. It was difficult to dodge the oncoming wall of bullets in such a tight space but teleportation had its perks. He went behind them and took them out one by one by either tearing them apart or throwing them at nearby walls. The hedgehog was about to do the same to the others until he noticed that they had been destroyed already and a bat was slowly walking towards him.

"That was fast."

"No thanks or anything? Fine." She teased. "I had this place mapped already. Funny though how the very bottom floor wasn't on it at all." She commented with curiosity.

"E Level." Shadow confirmed. Rouge slid the card through the slot which in turn opened the elevator doors. They both went inside and waited quietly as it descended.

"So then…" Rouge began, trying to start a conversation. "What do you think is down here?"

"I don't want to know." He said bitterly.

"So you think the rumours are true?" Rouge suggested. For years, conspiracy theories had been thrown around that G.U.N. had nightmarish scientific projects sealed away within their many bases around the world. They ranged from super weapons to super beings that had been tortured beyond recognition.

"They had better not be." His voice had grown cold at the thought. He knew that if he was ever captured and the rumours were true, then he would be one of the poor individuals trapped down here only to be experimented on. They were both snapped back to their current situation as the elevator doors slid open to reveal a dimly lit corridor.

"Already I don't like this." They both had the same concerns but Shadow kept his quiet.

"Just stay close. We just have to find 416 and we can go." She nodded and followed the hedgehog closely. It was silent and there was no one, not even robots, around anywhere. The hall eventually opened up into a larger room. Opposite them lay a singular door with the numbers '416' written above it. "Something's not right." Shadow whispered. Suddenly, several robots dropped from parts of the ceiling and surrounded the duo.

"Do not move or we will take action." One of them demanded but they didn't get this far just to stop now.

"On my mark…" Rouge nodded and waited for Shadow to count down.

"3… 2… 1… Now!" In an instant, Rouge began tornado kicking one of the robots while Shadow quickly teleported from one robot to the next whilst kicking each on in the head. The bat grabbed another robot by the arm and swung it around until it smashed to pieces by slamming into a wall. "Not bad." Shadow commented.

"What? You weren't expecting me to handle myself?"

"Not especially, considering you always call yourself a 'lady'." Shadow chuckled.

"You had better get that stereotype out of your head, mister. Nocturne had the same one, remember?"

"That's right, and she kicked your ass after that." The bat was left unamused while Shadow felt the opposite. They both made their way into the emerald room where three more heavily armoured robots greeted them with bullets. The lasers made it hard to manoeuvre but this didn't hinder the duo. Rouge especially found her way around them easily since being very acrobatic and expertly used their weight against them. Shadow on the other hand didn't limit the amount of Chaos Spears. Now they had to get the emerald which was enclosed within a cage made entirely of lasers.

"This could be an issue." Rouge pointed out.

"Don't you have a mirror or something?"

"I'm hardly going to bring my makeup to a military base."

"I don't know, stranger things have happened." The black mammal smirked, nearly earning himself a slap. "Alright, we just have to block enough of them so that we can retrieve the emerald without having our limbs burnt off."

"You know, those robots had some thick armour on them. Maybe they could be of use to us?" Shadow grinned at Rouge's idea and they both heaved one of them so that it was in the way of several of the lasers.

"Nice thinking, bat." He praised. While she didn't like it when he referred to her as 'bat', she took the compliment nonetheless. This emerald was the clear or grey one. Many had seen this emerald to be the most powerful of the seven as it could control the others. Shadow held it in the palm of his hand and stared at it, causing Rouge to question him.

"So now that you have them all, what do you intend on doing with them?"

"For the last time, I cannot tell you. Doing so could be very dangerous." He told her sternly. She was about to dig further until a tremendous explosion could be heard from above. "We need to move. Let's get Nocturne and get out of here." Rouge nodded before Shadow Chaos Controlled them both to the surface.

Once they both adjusted to the light, they were greeted with an unbelievable spectacle. Bodies were scattered everywhere; some in pieces. What really caused their jaws to drop was the flaming crater where a military helicopter had crashed. They both turned in unison to the untouched chameleon who was stood in the middle of the aftermath holding two rifles.

"We have GOT to do this again!" She exclaimed before firing both guns into the air.

"What the hell happened?!" Shadow shouted more out of shock than rage.

"Just taught humanity a quick lesson. Is that a problem?" The hedgehog debated in his mind if it really was or wasn't. He had told her to be a distraction and to not get captured. She had done both but he had no idea she would go this far in her onslaught. He hated humanity but even he had to admit that this was bordering insanity.

"We'll talk about it later. Let's go." His voice was far quieter than what it was a few seconds ago but neither female questioned him and they gathered to be teleported back to the apartment.


	16. Ever-Changing Tables

**Yay! Not only is it Saturday but is also Chapter 16! For those who haven't read _'Disconnect From Desire'_, 16 is my favourite number, so it makes me very happy to see a story make it to this milestone. It would have never gotten to this point if it wasn't for the support of everyone who reads it. I thank each and every one of you for sticking with this story so far. I hope you've enjoyed the ride because it isn't over yet!**

**I made this chapter extra long for such an occasion so I hope you like it! To add to today, I am also uploading something else.**

**For those who may or may not know, I did a one shot a while back called _'The Honour Code'_. I was very proud of it at the time but since looking back on it, I realised that there could be so much more to it. So, as a result, I have rewritten it and will upload the first chapter of it today! It is no longer a one shot and is now a short story. I'm really excited about it so feel free to check it out! :)**

**That's all for today and I will see you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It was late into the night and Nocturne was lying on the couch. She had given up trying to sleep long before now and for the first time, was thinking about everything that had been going on.

The chameleon never wanted to be one of the minions that were governed by complete idiots; that was the whole reason she did what she did. She despised the thought of being controlled by someone else. Before having a body of her own, she had no choice but to be the 'tamed being' that Arby wanted her to be otherwise she'd be punished. Now that she had her own life, she had to obey laws, society and government. The more she thought about it though, the more she realised she wasn't obeying them at all. The reptile had already rebelled, just as she had wanted, yet she still found herself questioning everything around her. She was still not where she wanted to be; but if this wasn't it, then where?

A door opening caught her attention. She sat up to see Shadow walking into the kitchen. Without so much as a glance, he spoke to her.

"You can't sleep either?" He asked.

"No." She said uncharacteristically sadly.

"You seem troubled." His bold statement was accurate even if she was struggling to figure out why.

"Can I ask you something?" The hedgehog nodded as he got himself a glass of water and walked over to her. "How did you figure out your place in this world?" Shadow seemed puzzled by her query.

"That is an oddly deep question for someone like you."

"I know, but it's really been bothering me. I've done all these awesome things like rob a vault, murder armed guards and take down that badass chopper yet I feel…"

"Lost?" Shadow suggested but she shook her head. "Depressed?" She shook her head again. "Empty?" She froze this time.

"_Empty?"_ The word echoed in her mind endlessly. "Empty." She repeated. "All the excitement I've felt, that's _all_ I've felt. Without it, I don't feel anything." She slammed her fist down on the table in front of her. "I don't get it! I thought I would be happy! Or at least feel something!" Rouge came out of her room shortly after being woken up by Nocturne's outburst.

"What's going on?" She asked with a yawn. Shadow simply shook his shoulders not knowing how to explain it himself.

"What is the point of any of this? I could kill an entire population but I still wouldn't feel anything."

"Are you having second thoughts? Don't you want to be here?" Rouge questioned.

"Of course I do, I wouldn't have joined you guys otherwise. I just want to feel something genuine. I want real emotion that isn't anger or sadness."

"Well, I'd love to help you but you're not exactly talking to the two most experienced people in the 'emotion' sector. I'm not one for that sort of thing and Shadow over there is about as emotional as a cardboard box." The hedgehog gave a glare to the bat who smirked it off.

"Arby would understand… and what did I go and do?"

"Betrayed the Chaotix, abandoned her in a museum-"

"Thanks Shadow! I can always count on you, huh?" She stated sarcastically.

"Guilt is a bitch." The mammal replied, earning an odd look from the other two.

"How do you know?" Rouge asked. The hedgehog stopped and took one deep breath before giving a momentary glance.

"I don't." He then went back into his room without another word.

"Well that was…" Nocturne began.

"Odd, I agree." Rouge finished for her. "I'd better see if he's ok. Sleep well." The bat walked into Shadow's room and closed the door. Nocturne knew she wouldn't sleep, at least not without some advice from the closest person she betrayed. With a heavy sigh, she quietly got up and left the apartment, heading for the Chaotix.

The roaming chameleon didn't use the streets. After everything she had done, she figured that she didn't need any unnecessary attention at the moment. Her footsteps were silent as she approached the front door. The reptile was originally going to knock, but thought better of it since it would wake the others; plus the fact that they likely knew of her actions and now saw her as a traitor. Regardless, she walked over to the nearest window and lightly tapped on it in order to wake the sleeping hedgehog on the couch.

I began to stir at the gentle sound of tapping. My initial thought was that Charmy had woken up, but that idea was cast aside instantly when I saw a familiar silhouette at the window as I was getting up. My tired expression soon turned into a glare as Nocturne stared back at me with the biggest puppy eyes I had ever seen. I laid back down and tried to get back to sleep.

"Arb, please." She began to beg through the window. "I really need to talk to you. It's important."

"But not as important as you though, right?" I said sarcastically referring back to our last conversation. The fact that she had to think about her answer was enough to anger me yet again. "Go away, Nocturne." I finished.

"But Arb!" She complained. "I need your help!"

"Is that right?" I snapped. "I needed your help once. Do you remember? I've needed it several times actually. What was it you did? Oh yeah! You left us at the power plant, left me to die at the museum and then went skipping off into the sunset alongside what's left of Team Dark!"

"Umm… yeah?" She said sheepishly. I knew she wouldn't leave until I had heard her out. No matter how angry I was.

"What is this about?" I demanded.

"This weird feeling I've got." I rolled my eyes.

"What 'feeling'?"

"Well… I feel nothing at all." I raised a brow at this.

"I don't understand."

"I mean literally. When I'm not doing anything that involves shooting stuff or nearly getting killed, I just… don't feel anything. I get frustrated and guilty."

"Guilty?" I questioned, not really believing her. "Why would you, of all people, feel guilty?"

"Because you're the only one who'd understand."

"I can't say I'm surprised. Shadow and Rouge are about as emotional as-"

"A cardboard box?" Nocturne cut me off.

"Not where I was going but it works. But back to the topic, what do you want me to do about it?" I asked.

"I was hoping you could fix it." She sounded like some kind of child who was asking their mother to rebuild their house that they had innocently burnt down. With a defeated sigh, I got up and joined Nocturne outside.

"Nocturne, I know what you're feeling because I've felt that my entire life." I explained.

"So, how did you fix it?" I felt a stab of guilt. Was she really that naïve?

"What did I just say? I still feel it now. That hypothetical hole where something should be but isn't. The hollowness that follows me every damn second. There is no 'fixing it', Nocturne, you've got to learn to live with it."

"B-but…" Her stuttering caught me off-guard. "I thought you were ok? Like when we first encountered Eggman. I don't think I've ever seen you smile so wide."

"I won't deny that I felt like some kind of super hero when those people were cheering for us, but it's all temporary. Like the rush you got when Vector yelled at you, it's the same thing."

"Then, how do you live with it?"

"To be honest, I don't. I just distract myself or bury it with other thoughts. It always comes crawling back out though, hence the depression, breakdowns, outbursts and whatever else." The chameleon sat on the step next to me. Her expression was one of utter hopelessness. I sat next to her and rested my head on her shoulder whilst she stared at her feet.

"What do I do, Arb?" Her voice alone was enough to put a lump in my throat, never have I heard her become so sad. "I could do whatever I want. I could take lives, burn shit down, go to space, save the world… basically anything no matter how big or small but none of it will matter, will it?" A lone tear escaped me but what I couldn't see, was that a lone tear had escaped Nocturne as well.

"Is that why you've been acting like this? A coping mechanism?" I took the long silence as a 'yes'. I felt terrible, she had the same 'condition' I had but she dealt with it the only way she knew how; by causing chaos.

"I guess I thought that near death experiences would be enough to satisfy me, but when I'm just sat around like I was tonight… it finally hit me. What is this, Arb?"

"I'm not sure." I answered honestly. "It's like we were born before we were complete. At least, that's how I see it."

"Incomplete freaks." Nocturne chuckled. I giggled with her remembering Charmy's quote from Sonic Heroes.

"So…" I began, changing the subject. "What's it like working with those two?"

"It was fun, don't get me wrong. We went everywhere gathering the emeralds. That reminds me, Shadow has them all now."

"Ah crap!" I groaned. "Did he tell you why he was gathering them to begin with?"

"Nope. He said telling anyone would cause some kind of catastrophe or whatever." I sighed at the lack of info. Shadow had all the Chaos Emeralds and we didn't know where or why.

"What are you going to do now?" I asked.

"What do you mean? Can't I just stay here?"

"You mean even after everything you've done? I don't know if that's a good idea."

"But I'll have nowhere to go once the other two figure out where I've been!" She began to panic.

"You should have thought of that before you ran off with them!"

"I thought I could come back; Vector's tolerant."

"Yeah, tolerant, not a pushover." I told her sternly "You saw the look he gave you when you teased him about Vanilla."

"Oh come on, that was funny." She argued weakly.

"Look, Vector is going to go mad at you and no I'm not kidding. I have no idea what Charmy will do but don't get me started on Espio." She laughed evilly at the mention of his name.

"I can handle Espio. You already know that."

"Actually, so can I." She gave me an odd look.

"Really? Did you finally punch him?"

"No, I simply got mad and yelled at him."

"Holy shit! Really?! Damn, I wish I'd seen that! I bet his expression was priceless!" She sounded like some excited school kid by this point.

"He didn't expect it, that's for sure. Even Vector was smirking." Nocturne laughed more at the image in her head. I wanted to laugh along with her, but I was still questioning whether or not it was the right thing to do. I hadn't seen the guy since the incident and I was beginning to think that I had only made things worse. "Look, you have to go back. They probably won't even know that you left."

"They were awake at the time, Arb." I grunted at the situation I suddenly found myself in. I couldn't just send her back to Shadow but I knew too well that Vector would be less than pleased.

"How do I know you won't just run back to them again? Since we've been here, you've barely been able to sit still."

"I can prove myself. I'll get yelled at by Vector and then I'll make the comeback of the century."

"…This isn't a movie, Nocturne. They're not just going to suddenly trust you." I explained but she seemed convinced that she was capable.

"So, what do you want me to do?" She asked.

"_How the hell should I know?!"_ I placed a hand on my head to try and think of some way just to get through the night.

"I'll let you sleep here tonight, but you need to hide somewhere."

"They never go into the closet under the stairs." She suggested.

"But it's all dusty and cramped in there." I told her but she didn't seem to mind.

"I can manage, Arby." The chameleon grinned before walking inside. I followed after her as she climbed into the closet and somehow got comfortable on one of the shelves. I struggled to hold back a smirk at the sight. "Shut up." She told me sternly before I said goodnight and closed the door.

Vector was the first one up the next day. I had only fallen asleep from the tiredness of being woken up by Nocturne. The croc got his usual mug of coffee before sitting at his desk. The weather was simply awful. The sky was grey and it had been hammering down non-stop. I was laid there watching it mindlessly as it reminded me of home. A sudden silent panic rushed through me when I realised I was awake. Did Vector know? I slowly lifted my head and looked at him. He smiled warmly at me which I couldn't return because I felt so ill out of anxiety.

"You ok?" He asked with concern.

"Yeah, just don't feel all that well." I told him. "Vector, do you hate Nocturne?" The croc stared blankly at me for a second.

"I don't hate her, Arb. I just don't appreciate it when she leaves her own flesh and blood to rot underneath a pile of concrete. Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering, if I could get her to come back, would you let her?" Vector studied me with one brow lowered. Just his expression told me that he was suspicious.

"You're hinting to something, aren't you?" I sighed, knowing I couldn't keep it from him. I looked away whilst pointing to the closet. He glanced back and forth a few times before rolling his eyes and making his way to the door. It creaked as he opened it, which woke the curled up chameleon inside.

"Do you mind?" She groaned, without realising.

"Ahem." He said loudly. Nocturne's eyes shot open and looked up at the large croc stood in front of her. She giggled nervously at him.

"H-hey Vector! What's up?" He did not look amused in the slightest.

"What are you doing in here?"

"Uh… I'm not ready to come out yet?" I slowly placed my head in my hands. This wasn't going to end well. The larger reptile stepped aside and pointed to the couch whilst keeping his irritated expression upon her. She crept out slowly and dusted herself off before sitting next to me. Vector followed her over and stood tall in front of the both of us.

"You owe me an explanation. Both of you." He demanded. I bit my lip out of nervousness before talking.

"Well, she came back here because she felt the same emotional numbness I feel. She didn't know how to deal with it. Anyway, now that she's here, she can't go back because the other two will realise that she came to Chaotix." I was terrified that Vector would just yell at us both and kick us out. To my surprise however, he did neither and instead began to grin.

"I have an idea and _if_ you can pull this off, I'll let you stay here again. How does that sound?" He was focused on Nocturne as he spoke. What was he planning? I glanced at the chameleon who looked completely baffled.

"What's this idea?" She asked.

"We make them taste their own medicine; use their own plan against them. They used you as an 'undercover spy' to get info on us. We can have you do the same to them." Nocturne gave me an uneasy look as I did the same back to her.

"But what if they figure it out like we did?! They could capture her like they did with Espio! I don't want to think about what they might do." I voiced my concerns but Vector seemed to have a plan for that as well.

"I'm hardly going to let her go alone. We can't afford to underestimate Shadow or Rouge considering they were able to capture Es so easily." The big boss croc told us.

"Whose gonna go with her? I can't because well… it's me. You can't, obviously. It's too dangerous for Charmy and-" I halted my words when it dawned on me who Nocturne would be forced to work with.

"What is it?" She asked before realising the same thing herself. "No. No. NO! I am NOT working with that asshole! Are you kidding me?! Vector please!"

"It's either this or nothing, Nocturne. You're going to learn the hard way that there are consequences for your actions." His grin was more unnerving than his words.

"What if he doesn't agree to this? Espio is just as stubborn." The dark chameleon reminded him.

"I know too well how much of a brick wall Espio can be, but he _will_ agree to this, I assure you. So, you had better be ready." He gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder before returning to his desk feeling rather proud of himself.

"Well, with that out of the way…" Nocturne jumped up, giving me a heart attack. "I'm gonna rest on the couch for a while. That shelf was a pain to sleep on." She went to the other couch and collapsed on it, much to my own amusement.

Later that day, I returned to my little hideaway concealed by the small stretch of woodland at the back of the house. It felt odd being here when it wasn't dark, but the rain seemed to counter it. I never minded the rain, even when it was a torrential downpour like this one. I only complained when it was cold and since it wasn't, I was quite relaxed just sitting here. I was hoping that Vector, Nocturne and Espio would come to some kind of agreement while I was gone. The odds of Espio and Nocturne getting along were about as likely as Shadow giving up the emeralds willingly. All I could hope for was that they would be civil.

"_Yeah right."_ The rain was coming down hard which in turn, allowed someone to walk up next to me without me noticing at all. I internally jumped at the sight but was then taken over by a slowly uprising sense of fear when I noticed the purple and black shoes stood next to me. My unusual eyes travelled upwards until they stopped upon the amber eyes that were looking down at me. I quickly turned away again, acting as if I was still angry when in truth, I was terrified.

"Vector told me to come find you." He told me bluntly. I nodded but then asked him a question.

"How did you know I was here?"

"Because you've been here before."

"What? How do you know that?!" I demanded. Had he been following me around?!

"This is my secret area. I come here sometimes to meditate, but lately when I have walked up here, I have noticed you instead." His explanation made me think back.

'_As I went further into the centre of the field, I thought I saw some flowers moving in the distance but I assumed it was either my eyes playing tricks on me or just the wind.'_

'_As I paid attention to the noises around me, I zoned in on a faint rustling sound. It was as if someone was moving through the grass and flowers. I turned suddenly, hoping to catch whoever it was off-guard but I soon relaxed when I saw no one there.'_

"Wait a minute, when I found this place the first time… were you already here?" He looked away but then nodded slowly.

"I had heard someone approaching. Not wanting to be disturbed, I went invisible to see who it was. I observed you as you sat down and voiced your thoughts." It then occurred to me that I got very upset back then. Had he seen that as well?

"You didn't by any chance stick around, did you?" The magenta reptile sat next to me with his legs crossed and his hands joined on his lap. I thought the rain would have bothered him, even if it had calmed down considerably.

"I saw and heard everything, hedgehog. I was stood next to you like I was just now. Your sudden change of attitude towards me got me thinking back to that night. You have a lot of perils in your life, have you not?" I kept my gaze upon him and nodded.

"You have no idea." I told him simply, not wanting to delve into it at this moment. "But what difference does it make?"

"It makes none. You are still human and I still despise them however, the opinion you have on yourself intrigues me. You see yourself as a 'bringer of pain'. May I ask why that is?" I shook my head and chuckled.

"If it was anyone else, I would have told them to drop it by now, but I know you, getting to the point is one of the things you do well." I got up, as did Espio shortly after, and began to make my way back with the chameleon walking alongside me. "I would gladly tell you, but not now. With everything that's happening, now just isn't a good time." I saw him nod out of the corner of my eye.

"I assume you know of what is going on later today." He seemed very calm considering he supposedly still despised me. Perhaps he's not in the mood for an argument, hardly surprising since he's just been with Nocturne.

"You guys are leaving today?!"

"Correct, I will observe and gather information while Nocturne tries to get the location of the Chaos Emeralds."

"I get that you hate me and all that crap but… be careful, ok? We both know what Shadow can do." He looked stunned for a very brief moment.

"I shall."

A few hours later and the reptilian duo were ready to go. Nocturne had been a lot more tolerant of him and vice versa but that didn't stop me worrying that they would kill each other the moment they walked out of the door. Vector refreshed the plan to everyone before they made their way back into the city.

"What if they don't come back?" I asked.

"They will." Vector reassured. "Even if I have to drag them back."


	17. Purposeful Absence

**Welcome back! How have you all been? I have a problem where I get distracted easily, hence why this chapter is later than intended, but still, it's here for you all.**

**The animals here are fine. Zeus is getting bigger and scarier by the day, Sage can still beat me in a staring contest and Jak likes to swim through the bubbles given off by the filter in his tank. That has pretty much been my week aside from coursework, but the very word makes me tired.**

**Anyway, I hope you are all well and I hope the weather is good wherever you are. It's been great here! Everyone else complains that it's 'too hot' but personally, the higher the temperature, the better it is.**

**I hope you all enjoy the chapter and I will see you all again next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

"You've been a good boy so far. Are you finally warming to me?" Nocturne teased as they approached the apartment building.

"Do not start now. We have a job to do." He said calmly but with an edge. "What if they know that you came back to us?" He asked, knowing that Nocturne was concerned about it earlier.

"I can be very convincing, Espio. No need to worry." She assured him. They remained silent as they walked up to Shadow's door. Espio went invisible and climbed onto the ceiling as they both entered.

"Hey" She greeted unnaturally calmly, causing the other two to look in her direction. "Bad time?"

"Where have you been?" Shadow asked, taking time off from staring out the window.

"I've just been for a long walk to sort myself out." She went to the couch and sat beside Rouge who slid an arm around the back of her neck.

"You were gone all night." The bat pointed out.

"What part of 'long walk' did you not get?" Nocturne replied. Espio remained on the ceiling, keeping himself focused on the conversation at hand; but every now and then, he would glance at the hedgehog stood by the window. A deadly rage would bubble in his gut for reasons he didn't want to think about.

"_Now is not the time for this."_ He told himself repeatedly.

"Where did you go?" The hedgehog continued to ask.

"Around the city and no, I didn't blow anything up before you ask." Shadow didn't think much of it and got back to his all-important staring.

"Well that's good at least. I would hate for anything to happen to you." Her voice got gradually more seductive as she spoke; causing Espio to raise a confused brow.

"I wish you would stop." The dark mammal was clearly irritated by Rouge's flirtatious behaviour; even Nocturne was a little uncomfortable with it knowing that Espio was in the same room.

"What's the matter? Are you getting jealous over there by yourself?" The bat teased as she gave him a playful wink. Shadow rolled his eyes as did Espio. Nocturne just sat back on the couch and kept quiet; hoping somehow the other two would forget her existence. Her luck was not with her as Rouge leaned closer to her. "Are you alright there?" She asked but the chameleon could tell that she wasn't really all that concerned. Nonetheless, Nocturne came up with an excuse.

"I really don't feel all that well, Rouge, so unless you want projectile vomit all over you then I suggest you back off a little bit." The bat didn't need any more to take the hint and was quick to move away.

"Alright, I get it. Neither of you are in the mood tonight." She made it sound as if that was a bad thing when in fact; the other three were all equally relieved. Shadow didn't turn around but did give a questionable look when he noticed Nocturne's reflection in the window. "I'll make myself useful elsewhere. Who knows? Maybe I'll run into that echidna again." Nocturne's face was the picture of disgust at the image the bat had put into her head. Before she could say anything though, Rouge got her coat and made her way out the door.

A few seconds passed, allowing the hedgehog to gather some courage to face Nocturne and speak.

"You are behaving very strangely." He stated bluntly. The reptilian didn't face him and just remained on the couch with her arms folded.

"What's your definition of 'strange', Shadow?" She asked.

"Many answers would fit well there, but for this particular situation, my definition would be your sudden lack of enthusiasm towards everything." Nocturne agreed with him without question. Ever since the night before, she had felt different. It was as if everything had lost its colour and now the world had the same dim scene throughout. The black and red chameleon thought of anything to try and regain some of her spark, but none of the usual things she liked appeared to work.

"_How can Arby live with this every day?"_ She thought to herself, completely forgetting that Shadow was there. _"It doesn't make any sense! I want explosions, fights, fire, lightning, anything! Dammit!"_ An uneasy silence filled the room. The more she thought about it, the more it overwhelmed her. Shadow was stunned when he noticed tears falling from the broken reptile.

"What is causing this?" Shadow asked, reminding her of his existence. The hedgehog approached until he was stood next to her. Espio kept a piercing eye on his every move; as if missing a thing was criminal.

"Why do you care?" She spat bitterly. Shadow was about to answer but was instantly halted by the chameleon. "Save your breath, I already know you don't."

"What makes you think that?" The hedgehog questioned.

"Is that not obvious to you? If you gave a crap at all then you would tell me what you tell Rouge. She knows everything about what you're up to. She knows why you have the emeralds, she knows where you're keeping them, but do you know what really pisses me off?" Shadow stared with a blank expression. It was as if his mind was trying to comprehend what exactly was going on. Espio was in a similar state. He could no longer tell if Nocturne was being genuine, or if this was her way of finding out where the emeralds were being kept. "The fact that I am just your little bitch in all of this. I stole the emerald at the museum for you, I stole the emerald out of the Mayor's Vault for you, I held off a fuck ton of crap just so your furry ass wouldn't get shot on the way in! What do I get?! Hit on by some desperate thief and what I can only assume is some screwed up emotional disorder!" A huff escaped the mammal, causing a teary-eyed glare from the reptile next to him.

"You're interesting." He stated plainly. "But Rouge does not know why I have the emeralds." Shadow corrected. "Nobody does. Why can you not understand that? If I told anyone then it would only mean bad news."

"Alright, fine. I'll give you that one, but she does know where they are, right?" Shadow shook his head. "What? But I tho-"

"I don't know what she has said but take it from me, she knows nothing." His sudden seriousness told Nocturne loud and clear that he was being honest. She sat there, completely lost in thought for several seconds before getting up and heading for the door. Shadow tilted his head but the chameleon was quick to explain, as if being able to read his questioning thoughts.

"I'm gonna head out for a while. I just… I don't know." She finished quickly and left in the same manner. The hedgehog placed a hand on his chin, trying to figure out answers to the many questions lingering in his head. Espio kept his fury-filled eyes on him as he paced around the room. With a huff, he marched to his room and slammed the door.

"_What was that?"_ Espio wondered. Since no one was here, the chameleon took this chance to sneak out and return to Chaotix for the night. A huge part of him didn't want to come back tomorrow, but he knew he had to.

_Back at Chaotix_

The day so far had been very relaxed. Vector, Charmy and I were all sat around the table playing cards. Unfortunately, the bee only knew Snap, so we took the time to teach him some more. We had only taught him Go Fish so far, since it took him a while to grasp it, but eventually he was winning games all by himself.

"So, what was I like?" He asked. Somehow during our conversation, we had gotten to the subject of my writing and the kind of things I would write about. I had to be incredibly careful with every answer I gave.

"You were very independent for your age. You had already learnt how to create and modify weapons, plus you had amazing aim."

"I sound awesome!" He sang loudly

"What about me?" Vector asked, also wanting to know.

"Well… your role wasn't as large as Charmy's. You didn't show up again until everyone got to Angel Island."

"Aww." Vector groaned.

"But when you did show up, everyone missed you." I finished to try and cheer him up.

"Yay!" Charmy cheered. "What happened at the end?"

"I can't just tell you the ending. That'll spoil it." I told him despite knowing that there was no possible way for them to read it. Before they could interrogate me further, a magenta chameleon calmly walked through the door. I raised a brow when Nocturne wasn't with him.

"Hey Espio." I greeted before throwing a very obvious question at him. "Where's-"

"I have no idea where she is." He said coldly before I could finish. We all watched in amazement as he stormed upstairs and slammed his bedroom door. I slowly turned to the others with a fake smile.

"Excuse me." I said softly before making my way up to his door. The other two watched with anticipation. Charmy was hoping that I would get angry again since he was at Vanilla's the first time while Vector didn't want another fight. I gently knocked on his door and after hearing an irritated grunt from the other side; he opened up with an expression to match. "Would you mind telling me what the hell is going on?"

"Shadow won't talk and Nocturne is depressed. Is that enough for you?" His impatience more than caught my attention.

"I know your butt still hurts from when I kicked it, but I'm gonna need you to work with me here."

"All you did was yell at me." He stated.

"Do you want me to do it again?!" A sudden raise in volume accompanied my voice.

"Keep your fur in check, what is it that you want?" I couldn't lie; his sudden quick wit threw me off slightly.

"The full details; what happened?" With a sigh, he gestured me to follow him back downstairs. We both sat down and he began to explain.

"Shadow is keeping his cards close to his chest. He is telling no one, not even Rouge, about where or why he has the emeralds."

"We're powerless until we have that info." Vector stated whilst scratching his head. "You know, this would be a hell of a lot easier if you were still friends with the guy." Both Charmy and I gave the chameleon a shocked expression.

"You were friends with him?!" Charmy shouted. Vector answered for him.

"Yeah, they were practically inseparable until a few months ago. Espio wanted me to keep it quiet for some reason. What happened anyway?" The croc asked him.

"We had an argument, that's it." He said bitterly. I could see that he was very tense. Just saying Shadow's name was enough just to distract him. His hands were clasped together tightly and he had a permanent glare.

"Sounds like more than that if it has gotten you this wound up." I pointed out, angering the chameleon further.

"Forget about it. We have more important things to focus on."

"But I wanna hear more abou-"

"No." Espio cut the bee off with no mercy.

"Alright, alright…" I began, trying to get back on Espio's good side. "It has only been a day. I know Nocturne can get him to spill the beans. Did she give any indication of where she was going?" I asked but the chameleon shook his head.

"We know Nocturne, she always comes back." Vector told us, which so far, had been true.

"You had better be right. I am not going back there alone."

"Why not? Did uncle Shadow make you mad?" The bee's question was perfectly innocent. Espio's answer though, was quiet; he clearly didn't want the others to hear, but I was sat right next to him.

"In more ways than you know about."

"What?" Charmy asked. I gave him a concerned look which he saw when he turned his head. I was expecting a glare or some snide comment because I was staring, but I instead, got a sudden sense of sadness when his eyes met mine. He shook his head again before returning to the privacy of his room.

"Ok, did anyone else see that?" I asked.

"Yeah, I don't think I've ever seen Espio so…" Vector trailed off, not being about to think of the right word.

"Hurt." I said for him. "Whatever Shadow did, it must have hit him pretty hard."

"Damn that hedgehog! How dare he!" Vector suddenly yelled as he stood up angrily. Charmy launched himself under the table out of fright.

"Whoa! Vector! Calm down!" I yelled back at him upon seeing the young bee so frightened. He breathed in and out heavily before talking again.

"Sorry… I don't like when my friends are hurt." I nodded in understanding.

"Likewise Vec, but this happened months ago. There's nothing we can do about it now. Finding out where the emeralds are should be our priority." I stated, getting the head honcho back on track.

"But we're gonna need Nocturne and Espio already said that she's ran off somewhere."

"And like you said, she will come back." I reminded him.

"So, what do we do until then?" Charmy asked once he poked his head back into view.

"We wait."

_Meanwhile…_

Shadow walked along the dark and quiet streets back to his apartment. He had since gone out for some time to himself. The hedgehog needed to think about Nocturne, the emeralds… everything. Something felt out of place to him but he couldn't place his finger on it. Shadow knew the reasons for his actions but he still felt that he hadn't done enough. The black mammal was soon distracted when he stood at the bottom of the apartment building and looked up. Aside from the clear night sky, he noticed a figure stood at the top. From where he was, he couldn't see who. In a flash, he Chaos Controlled to the roof only to find Nocturne, staring endlessly across the city skyline. Shadow instantly felt anxious and approached her whilst being careful of his next move.

"Nocturne?" He questioned softly to not startle her.

"Shadow." She greeted, also with a gentle tone to her voice. "Come here." He was reluctant, but did as she'd asked. She spoke again once he was stood next to her. "Do you see it?" With an odd look, he replied.

"See what?"

"Out there." Nocturne pointed to the horizon. It was completely black except for one tall building on the horizon which was enveloped in flames and smoke. An uneasy look became apparent as he turned to look at her.

"Did-did you do that?" He questioned, this time with a bit more authority. She nodded but her expression remained blank.

"I did that, Shadow. Do you know what I feel?" He stayed silent but she told him nonetheless. "Nothing. I feel nothing. I blew that building up and I feel nothing." The hedgehog had been around her enough to know that this was far from her 'normal' behaviour. This was turning into a problem, so much so, that she was stood on the edge of a building.

"What are you doing up here?" The mammal asked, feeling less comfortable every second.

"What do you think, Shadow? There is no point to any of this. I could blow up this city but still… it's hopeless." She looked straight into his eyes with a seriousness that oddly intimidated him. "I'm up here because I have nowhere else to be." Her answer was vague yet accurate. The more she thought about it, the more she realised she lacked any kind of purpose. The only reason she was here was because of some freak incident whilst travelling through a portal to this world. In truth, if she wasn't around, everyone would be just fine; Arby included. All she had ever done was give her headaches and torment her whilst being in her mind. Now that she had her own body, she did the exact same thing just on a larger scale. "If I wasn't around, nothing would change." Her sudden words caused Shadow to panic.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb, hedgehog. You know exactly what I'm talking about." Her emerald eyes stared back at the distant blaze lighting up the sky. Shadow wasn't sure what to do.

"This isn't a joke, Nocturne."

"When was I laughing?" She asked. "I would give anything to not be this machine anymore; even if that 'anything' involves my own life."

"No! You do not talk about suicide! Don't you dare!" He demanded as if the very thought was wrong.

"Why not, Shadow?" Her voice lacked any energy and her every word seemed to match her current state; broken.

"I take it very, very seriously, Nocturne. I will not allow you to-"

"Just like everyone else… you only seek to control; kinda like your power." Shadow was silent but alert, watching her every move. "You can't let me have this? What if death was the one true freedom?" The hedgehog was bewildered. The day before she was ending lives at the pull of a trigger and now she threatened to end her own. How could someone's mind set change so quickly? He couldn't comprehend it.

"Nocturne, think about what you're saying… please."

"I know what I'm saying, Shadow. This is all I've got." Her green orbs looked into his crimson ones. No tears were shed, no sense of sadness given off, he couldn't read anything. "Even you are lost by this." The chameleon looked away once more and closed her eyes. "I've done what I can and gave you what you wanted but now, it's time to do the same for myself." A sudden rush of panic shot through him at her last comment. Everything seemed to slow down as Nocturne backed up and began running towards the edge.

"No!" Shadow yelled as he dove forward, hoping to grab her arm or something just to stop her. He crashed down onto his stomach empty-handed. Nocturne was nowhere in sight.


	18. Alliance of Wrong and Right

**Hello again! How are you all doing today? I hope you have all had a good week! :)**

**This chapter I really enjoyed writing for some reason. I didn't notice the word count until I was done so it is a little longer than usual. Not a bad thing at all, just a heads-up.**

**I've been doing mainly coursework again this week. It's getting there though, I might have a summer break after all (Just jinxed it, crap). I hope you are all enjoying your break for those who are on it and for those who are not... I am sorry, I understand.**

**That's all for now, I'll see you next weekend!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It was another peaceful night. I was comfortable on the couch and about to doze off when I heard a door creak. I opened one eye to look at the front door to see that it was still closed. My ear twitched at the sound of gentle footsteps walking across the landing and down the stairs. My only guess was that it was Espio since he was the only one capable of being this quiet. To my surprise however, it was the one I least expected.

A small figure walked into view and gently began nudging my side.

"Arby?" He whispered. "Are you awake?"

"I am now." I told the young bee in a tired voice. "What is it, little guy?"

"Well umm… I had a nightmare." Not-so-fond memories filled my head of when I was little. My experiences were a bit more extreme however, with sleep walking and hallucinations.

"What was it about?" I asked once I had shaken myself awake and sat up, allowing the bee to sit next to me.

"You got eaten." He stated bluntly. Both my brows raised, it was an oddly gruesome image for a six year old.

"By what?"

"Espio." Part of me wanted to laugh but I bit my lip in order to stop myself.

"Can I ask why?"

"He got mad at you and since he doesn't like you, he decided to eat you." The image of Espio as some kind of dinosaur then appeared in my mind. I quickly forced it out again though, before I started giggling.

"Look Charms, I know Espio and I don't exactly see eye to eye, but he's not the kind of guy to just… eat someone. That would completely go against everything he believes in." Charmy nodded but was still a little shaken up. "I know how scary nightmares can be; I used to get them all the time. You wanna stay down here for the night?" He seemed to ease at my suggestion and nodded again, this time with more enthusiasm. I got comfortable before the bee practically jumped on me. He tossed and turned to begin with before finally settling.

"Night Arby." He said softly, followed by a yawn.

"Night Charms." I said in return.

_Meanwhile…_

He leapt to his feet and glanced around.

"Shit!" Shadow growled. In a last-ditch effort, he Chaos Controlled back to the bottom of the building and looked up. "No you don't!" The hedgehog dove to the side and, with a few seconds to spare, caught the falling chameleon before she met her demise. She wondered how death could be so painless, before opening her eyes to meet the very angry crimson ones staring back at her. She studied her surroundings before finally realising what had happened.

"What did you do?!" She yelled at him, despite already knowing. Nocturne jumped out of his arms and glared furiously at him; not allowing his hateful scorn to intimidate her.

"What the hell do you think I did?!" He was just as pissed. Did he seriously just save her life only to be yelled at?!

"I told you that this was what I wanted!"

"I couldn't just stand by and let you throw yourself to your death!"

"Why the fuck not?! You let it happen to Maria!" If attempting to kill herself was a stupid move, then this one was off the charts. In an instant, Shadow had grabbed her by the neck and slammed her into the filthy, brick wall of the apartment block.

"You had better watch your fucking mouth. There's no big sister to help you out here." His voice had suddenly become deep and deadly. His glare felt as if it could pierce her eyes in a second. Still, others would have been begging for mercy at this point and throwing apologies at every chance they got. Nocturne wasn't. She didn't feel the fear that was intended. Had she hit a nerve? No big deal, right? The chameleon didn't struggle within his grip, she knew he was stronger.

"What's the matter, Shadow? A few fucking words hurt, did they?" An uneasy silence lasted between them. The hedgehog was having second thoughts on saving her life at this point, but he knew that wouldn't be the answer merely because that was what she wanted.

"If I was anyone else, then I would've thrown you off that roof." He stated calmly, the previous venom either gone or covered up.

"But you're not though, are you? You're just another cog in this societal machine. Your life is almost as meaningless as mine." Reluctantly, he let her go and took a step back.

"Why 'almost'?" He questioned as if she would just tell him.

"That doesn't matter… none of it does." Nocturne turned and began walking away. Shadow was about to stop her but realised she needed this time alone. Despite it all, he hoped she would get out of this state of mind.

_The Next Morning_

Vector was the first awake. He glanced at the clock hung up on the wall next to his bed before stretching and getting up. The croc got himself dressed before attempting to leave his room. Instead, he walked into the door due to still being tired.

"Ugh… ow." He complained somewhat quietly. With one hand placed on where his head met the door, he made his way downstairs and was about to go into the kitchen until he noticed an unfamiliar sight. Vector rubbed his eyes just to be sure, but he knew right away what he was looking at just from the black and yellow stripes. "What do we have here?" He whispered to himself with a chuckle.

"What is it?" Espio suddenly asked as he stood on the landing.

"How do you do that?" Vector questioned, not hearing the ninja come out of his room at all.

"Do what?" With a grunt, Vector dropped the subject and waved his hand madly in order for the chameleon to join him downstairs. He rolled his golden eyes before going to see what all the fuss was about. In all honesty, he thought Vector was over-reacting; maybe he had just seen Vanilla walk past. The reptilian was pleasantly surprised however, when his own eyes laid upon the unlikely duo sleeping on the couch.

"Come on Es, you gotta admit that this is cute." Espio looked at the croc with a blank expression.

"He's only this attached because she looks like Shadow. You know how much he idolises him." The chameleon pointed out.

"For Chaos sake, it's more than that. That would only be the case if she used guns and could Chaos Control. I'm telling you, he sees her as a big sister." The ninja wasn't convinced but nodded just so he would get off his back about it. Vector made his way into the kitchen to get his early morning coffee. Espio was about to return to his room, but couldn't resist another look at the sleeping pair. The bee was curled up on the edge of the couch whilst Arby was asleep with one arm around him. Her red headphones were placed on the bee's helmet, likely to help him sleep. After a few seconds, Espio allowed himself to grin.

"I admit it." He said quietly before walking back up the stairs and gently closing his door.

_Meanwhile…_

The Ultimate Lifeform was sat on the couch staring at the table in front of him. The black mammal hadn't slept at all. He was deep in thought about the night before but more importantly, why the chameleon had not come back yet. Shadow found himself checking his communicator constantly. His instinct was telling him that something wasn't right. Two crimson eyes travelled to the door once he picked up the sound of footsteps approaching. To his odd disappointment however, it was just Rouge, returning from her night out.

"Hey." She greeted casually. Shadow nodded in return. "You're not as chirpy as you usually are." She pointed out. When was he ever chirpy? Still, she was right. Perhaps it was the lack of sleep?

"You didn't run into Nocturne whilst on your travels, did you?" The hedgehog asked, looking for some kind of answer.

"No… I thought she was here with you?" He looked back at the table which told the bat that something was up. "Alright, what happened?" He wasn't sure if telling her was a good idea, but at the same time, she could help him search if the situation required it. Deciding he had nothing to lose, Shadow explained everything; her actions, her words and her escape. Rouge instantly tensed once he brought up the suicide attempt and became anxious knowing that she had run off. "You just let her go?" Her voice conveyed her annoyance.

"I couldn't just force her to stay put!" Shadow argued.

"You mean like you did with Espio?" The bat quickly pointed out.

"That was different."

"Was it? Really?" She asked, suddenly becoming sarcastic.

"You are not one for sarcasm. Do not start now." He complained with a glare.

"Look, we thought it was bad enough when she was bringing down helicopters, but now, she's loose in the city, prone to ending her own life and on top of that, she knows far too much about us." Shadow had completely forgotten about her vast array of knowledge. Nocturne wasn't only dangerous, but valuable.

"Shit! What the hell do we do?!" The hedgehog got up and began walking around the room. "We can't just wander around the city! G.U.N. will be on our backs quicker than you, when I have a Chaos Emerald."

"Firstly, you're right and secondly, I'm not that bad." Before another word could be spoken, Shadow's wrist communicator began to beep, indicating that someone was trying to contact him. He lifted his arm and pressed the button that brought up the screen. Rouge couldn't help but notice his expression whilst he did this. She found it strange how he was so unsettled and anxious; two things that were very rare for someone who was usually so calm and collected. All of a sudden, his face changed to one of absolute rage. No, not rage… fear?

"Greetings Shadow. I must admit I didn't expect you to be on the receiving end of this thing." An all too familiar voice said to him.

"How did you get on this channel?" He growled in return.

"Oh, I assume she's a friend of yours?" He moved the communicator to show the chameleon who had unintentionally kept him up all night. Shadow's eyes widened at the sight. All Rouge could do was stand there confused. The dark chameleon was restrained to the wall behind him with heavy chains. Her expression was entirely blank except for her eyes, which were darting around the room as if she was terrified. "She didn't put up a fight at all. She didn't even struggle when she was in my grasp. I knew she was different when she threw a compliment at me the first time we met. However, I had no idea she was _this_ different."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Shadow demanded.

"You mean you don't know? OHOHOHOHOHO! Then have I got a surprise for you! But you will have to earn it first. She's on my ship. That is your hint. Have fun finding it! MWAHAHAHAHA!" The signal was dropped.

"That son of a bitch!" Shadow yelled.

"Eggman has her?" Rouge questioned since she didn't see anything. The hedgehog nodded slowly with a concerned look. "Oh no…"

"We have to find him! She doesn't have a lot of time." Shadow told her, forcing them both to focus on the situation.

"How? We have no idea where his ship is." Rouge pointed out.

"It has to be near the city if he was able to catch Nocturne personally. Go find Sonic and the others, they see the bastard on a daily basis, they'll at least have spotted him."

"And what are you going to do?" He breathed in and out heavily before replying.

"I've got an unwanted trip to make."

_Back at Chaotix_

Vector put the phone down and practically skipped away from his desk.

"Got a job, I'm assuming?" I asked with a giggle.

"Yep! It's not much but it should be enough to get us by." He told me. The croc called for Charmy and Espio who both joined us downstairs.

"What's up, boss?" The young bee asked.

"We've got a job, boys!" Vector announced proudly.

"Are we leaving right now?" Charmy questioned.

"Well, why not?"

"Hold on." Espio spoke. "I can't go. I have to return to a… certain place."

"He's right." I said, backing him up to some extent. "He needs to make sure Nocturne is ok. Don't you, Espio?" I told him with a deadly sort of kindness. He shot a quick glare but then nodded.

"Aww man. I guess it's just gonna be you and me then, Charms."

"Wait what?!" I jumped up. "I'm not coming?" He gently poked me in the head where my bandage was.

"I'm not taking any chances with you, Arby. You were pretty badly hurt when we found you. You aren't going anywhere until you've fully recovered." I knew he was looking out for me and I really wanted to be grateful for that, but I couldn't help but feel like a dead weight.

"So… what am I supposed to do?" My disappointment didn't cover itself up well; a slight downside to being such an emotional being.

"While we're gone, you can clean up the house if you like?" I took a quick scan of the many papers, coffee stains and empty mugs that were scattered around, and that was just his desk.

"Take a look around, Vector." I asked. He did so and then looked back at me. "Now answer me this: are you serious?" He laughed it off, thinking that I was joking.

"You'll be fine! You don't have to do it all, just make a start." I could already feel Espio's obnoxious grin burning into the back of my head. For just a moment, I really wanted to punch him. Instead, I spoke to Vector.

"Does that include your rooms to?"

"Only if you feel up to it. Feel free to go into my room." Vector said kindly so I wouldn't be uncomfortable.

"Mine to!" Charmy sang with excitement.

"Don't even think about it." Espio said coldly. I rolled my eyes and turned to him.

"No shit, you don't let anyone in there." I reminded him, not that he needed it. Despite the artic storm he always gave off to me, I was glad that we at least talked a lot more. The ninja even seemed playful around me at times, but only at my expense.

"Anyway, we had better get going. Don't want to keep our client waiting." Vector stated.

"I should get started then." I got up and took two steps before Vector scared the life out of me.

"Hold it!" The three of us stared at him. "Stand next to Espio for a sec." The chameleon and I looked at each other and then back to Vector.

"W-why?"

"You'll see." I slowly approached until I was stood next to him. It was the most uncomfortable I had ever felt and I didn't dare look at him.

"Oh my Chaos!" He suddenly squealed.

"What is it?" Espio questioned, not liking the attention.

"You're so small!" Charmy squealed along with him. I exhaled loudly. I already knew about being a smaller-than-average human, but I was a smaller-than-average Mobian too?

"That's funny coming from you, Charms." I pointed out since he was smaller than all of us.

"Hey! I'm a bee! I have an excuse!" He said in between giggles. A deeper chuckling soon came from next to me. I turned my head very slowly until I was looking at the two golden orbs staring down at me.

"Do you want to take this outside?" I said calmly, but my intimidation had no effect.

"Are you sure? You might get blown away." The three of them burst into laughter whilst I walked away and into the kitchen.

"Alright, alright, we really have to get go-" Vector was then cut off by a knock at the door. The croc opened it to see the last person he expected. "What the hell are you doing here?!" He demanded whilst pushing Charmy behind him. The bee on the other hand, was star struck by their visitor.

"I appreciate the warm welcome but I need to talk to Nocturne's sister." The hedgehog stated.

"Who is it?" Espio asked from the other side of the room.

"Shadow." Vector told him.

"What?!" Espio growled fiercely. I peered my head around the doorway to figure out what was causing all the noise.

"Shadow? Why are you here?" His eyes focused on me. I could finally see the intimidation that everyone else talked about.

"We must talk, about your sister."

"What about her? Is she ok?" I approached the front door as he spoke.

"No, far from it. Eggman has captured her." Everyone in the room gasped except for me.

"That's no big deal. We can just go and rescue her." The others looked at me as if what I had just said was the world's worst insult. "What? The worst he'll do is hit a wrong button and let her go." They kept staring, for reasons I had no clue of.

"I can only assume that you know who Eggman is, yes?" Shadow asked me.

"Yeah, he's that scientist who's not very good at what he does." Shadow and the others were all speechless.

"Could you give us a sec?" Vector asked before closing the door on the baffled hedgehog. "Arby, where you came from, how was he portrayed?" I found the question odd but answered anyway.

"Well, he had an I.Q. of 300 and was hell-bent on taking over the world."

"Both of which are true, what else?" Vector said, allowing me to continue.

"He could make impressive robots but they would always have some fatal flaw which Sonic would figure out and use to stop him."

"Ok, what about when he took someone as his prisoner, what would he do with them?"

"Not that much. He would usually use them as bait so he could get to Sonic. I haven't read much, but it was only in the comics that he would actually harm someone."

"Alright…" The trio looked concerned with each word I spoke. "Take the comic version, times it by ten and replace 'harm' with 'torture'."

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Vector, talk with Shadow. I will explain things to Arby." Espio suddenly jumped in. He gestured for me to follow him back into the kitchen.

"What is it, Es... pio?" I added before he got mad at me again. "Why did you get so angry anyway?"

"Nicknames signify a bond. We have no such bond." His words hurt, more than I expected them to. "Regardless, the Eggman you know is not the Eggman that has your sister."

"Then tell me, what is this Eggman like?"

"He may be a failure in the area of mechanics, but when it comes to getting information out of someone, he will go to lengths that others find… inexcusable."

"I don't understand. Stop speaking in riddles and tell it to me straight." I asked, now getting fed up with everyone's sugar coating.

"The doctor is nothing short of a madman. He is a master of torture, and will stop at nothing until Nocturne had given him whatever it is that he wants, even if it means killing her." I stood there, unable to move. Espio physically had to shake me by the shoulders to snap me out of it. "The things he does… no one should ever have to go through it, including Nocturne. We have to find her and get her out. Do you understand?" I nodded slowly, still trying to regain my hold on the current situation. We both exited the kitchen to see everyone, including Shadow, stood in the living room staring at us.

"She's being held on his ship. That's all he told me. I sent Rouge to find Sonic and the others to see if they know where his fleet is located."

"His fleet?!" I repeated. "We have to face his entire fleet?!"

"It's either that or she dies." Shadow said rather bluntly. I went very pale and sat myself down. "I'm sure you all agree that we need to help her. Can we put everything aside and work together for once?" The Ultimate Lifeform's suggestion was rather bold and he earned himself glares from both Vector and Espio, although I was still unsure as to why the chameleon was so mad at him.

"Fine, but this doesn't change anything."

"I never asked for it to." The hedgehog told the croc, who clearly didn't like the idea. A beeping could then be heard as Shadow answered his communicator. This time, it was Rouge, who informed him that she was with the other Freedom Fighters and that they should join them. The conversation was short and the mammal hung up as quickly as he had answered. "They're all with Tails at his home. We should meet up with them there."

"Then let's go." Vector told all of us as he, Shadow and Charmy went outside. I was about to do the same until I glanced back at Espio who hadn't moved an inch.

"Are you alright?" I asked. He didn't answer. "It's Shadow, isn't it?" His lost gaze instantly focused on me. "Espio please, what is it that he did?" The ninja placed a hand on my shoulder and spoke softly.

"Some other time, Arby. For now, your sister needs us." I understood and we both quickly followed the others to Tails' house.


	19. Sting of the Sands

**Welcome back! We finally have a heat wave! It's a miracle! Everyone I know complains about 'Oh, it's too hot!' or 'Oh, it's too cold!" but with me, the warmer the better! So, I've been in a relatively good mood for most of the week. I hope the weather is just as good where you all are!**

**My room is like an oven, most would hate it with Sage's heat lamp plus Zeus' heat mat. Reptiles are great! Sage even came out and had a run (Or waddle, it's really cute). He thought that climbing the laundry basket was a great idea. It was either that or climb the curtains, or my leg, or my face. He has really sharp claws... so you can imagine how much it hurt combined with his monumental grip since being arboreal (Tree-dwelling).**

**So yeah, my week was filled with animals and sunshine. Not bad at all. That's it for now, but I will see you all again next week! (Assuming my laptop holds out, it has been over-heating a lot and I cannot afford a new one :/)**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The weather on this summery day was pleasant. I was neither too hot nor too cold, but I couldn't appreciate the smaller details at this point in time. Birds could be heard singing amongst the bustling city traffic and a gentle breeze took the edge off of this sudden heat wave.

My mind was focused on Nocturne and what Espio had told me about the true nature of the doctor. Sure, there were perks to somehow arriving in a universe that I was already familiar with, but this wasn't recognisable at all. A master of torture? At least now I could understand why the ninja hates us so much, I'd likely have been the same.

We arrived with almost the entire cast of Mobians stood outside waiting for us.

"Welcome to the party!" Sonic greeted. I wanted to say some sarcastic comment in return, but thought better of it and got straight to the point.

"You do know what's going on, right?" I asked. They all nodded.

"Rouge told us everything." Tails began. "Now, we haven't seen his fleet personally, but I have sensors that can pick up the energy given off by his shields, and since every ship he has comes equipped with a shield generator…" He trailed off, allowing the rest of us to figure out where he was going with it.

"Have they picked up anything so far?" Espio asked, earning a slight look of surprise from me.

"They can only reach out across the city and they haven't picked up anything out of the ordinary. However, he may be outside of the city limits. He would still be close, yet out of range at the same time." I nodded, it made sense, but the city alone was big enough. How the hell were we going to find him if he wasn't in it?

"We've got ocean on one side, desert on another." Vector pointed out. "I don't think it would be all that difficult to spot a few hundred ships flying above ya."

"The desert has been bombarded with a vicious sandstorm for the past few weeks." Shadow informed us.

"That sounds like a good place to hide." Sonic spoke what we were all thinking.

"But what if we do find him? How the hell are we going to make it up that high?" I questioned, causing everyone else to look at each other in hopes of an idea coming out of nowhere.

"I can only Chaos Control a couple of us. I need my energy for when we get up there." The black hedgehog informed us.

"I can take Sonic, plus two others in the Tornado." Tails added. "Is that enough?"

"I don't know, Tails." Concerns were adding to my already unbearable anxiety.

"_Something could go wrong. You be captured, killed or worse."_ I wished my voices would shut up.

"We can't take everyone. So, we need to figure out who is best suited for a mission like this." We all agreed with the fox and set about deciding who would go. The obvious few would be Tails, Shadow and Sonic since they were taking up the others and were experienced when it came to facing Eggman. I would also go purely because it was my sister that he had captured and I was not going to let him get away with it. Now, we had to figure who else would come with us out of Rouge, Charmy, Espio, Vector, Amy and Cream.

Despite being on his fleet before, we decided that it was too dangerous for Charmy and Cream to come along, since one slip up could mean disaster. Amy, to the surprise of everyone, voted to stay behind and take care of the younger pair while we were gone. We didn't question it and decided who would go with who. Tails would take Sonic, Espio and I in his plane, while Shadow took Rouge and Vector with him. I had my own worries that Vector and Shadow would end up fighting, but the croc insisted that all prior emotions had been set aside.

Before leaving, Tails wanted to hunt around his garage for anything that may be of use to us. This gave us all a chance to 'relax'. Shadow kept away from everyone, except Rouge, but only because she followed him around. The Chaotix sat on the couch and chatted about the job they were supposed to be going on. I felt a stab of guilt. That job was going to be their only income for Chaos knows how long.

"Hey Vec." I greeted as I approached him. He nodded and smiled. "I'm really sorry about all of this. I'll make up for that job you can't go on, really I will."

"You worry too much. We'll be alright. There will be other jobs and besides, no amount of money will ever match up to a life." I was overwhelmingly grateful by his support. Charmy was the same and gave me a hug.

"Hey Arb, what if something happens to you guys up there?" I understood the bee's worry. Espio and Vector were the only family he had. Whether he saw me as the same was another story. What we were about to do had its risks, but I knew the other two would be just fine, even if I was less confident in myself.

"Vector and Espio will be fine, they've done this before." I said with a smile as I pat him on the helmet.

"But what about you?" He asked.

"What about me?"

"Will you be ok?" His wide eyes stared up at me, almost pleading for me to return safely.

"_Aside from the fact that I'm going to be above the clouds, staring death in the face with cannons shooting at me. Yeah, I'll be just peachy."_

"…Sure." Vector picked up on my uneasy tone as was quick to call me out on it.

"Come on Arb, you'll be fine!"

"Will I though? I've never done anything like this. Ever. Stopping Eggman in his hovercraft was one thing; his answer to arachnophobia was something else, but this? Storming his entire fleet on a rescue mission?"

"I know the idea is daunting, but it's not as if you're doing this alone." I appreciated the attempt at reassurance, but when I was scared, I will have an answer for everything.

"Chances are we'll be separated when we get up there." I reminded him.

"You'll have Espio with ya. You could throw this guy into a warzone and he wouldn't break a sweat!"

"He'll probably be the one to push me off the carrier." I stated dryly.

"Don't give me ideas." He said with a grin.

"_Asshole."_ I thought. Before things escalated, I caught a flash of pink out of the corner of my eye. I turned to see that Amy had come up to me.

"Hi Arby." She greeted with a small wave. I did the same in return. Charmy backed off a little bit, but I kept my hand on his helmet to let him know that everything was ok. She quickly explained why she came over, as if sensing that we all demanded it. "I was going to come visit you today, but obviously this came up."

"Really? What for?" I kept my voice as casual as I could, to avoid setting anything off. I was not in the mood for an argument and I don't think she was either.

"Firstly, to see if you were ok. I heard about your accident. That must have been horrible." She seemed genuinely concerned, which allowed me to let my guard down just a little bit.

"I don't remember much, but the headaches were a quick reminder." I told her. She nodded before continuing.

"I also wanted to apologise for the way things started off with us. I was a jerk to Charmy and to you and I would really like it if we could start over. You seem like a really nice person and what you're about to do is incredibly brave." I nearly fell over. Did I just hear that? I couldn't believe it. A grateful smile made its way across my face and I held out my hand for a shake.

"Thank you so much. You have no idea how much I needed that right now." She shook my hand and nodded.

"It's ok. If you ever want to talk, I'm usually around whether it's at the mall or at Tails' place."

"We should do that sometime, you know, when things have settled down."

"Hey everyone!" A young fox called out as he walked into the room.

"What's up, Tails?" Sonic replied.

"I've got a few things here that could be quite useful." He was carrying a few little gadgets. I had no idea what any of them were until he explained each of them as he placed them on the table in front of us. "This here is a hacking device. It can get into any lock and any system. You can open doors, disable laser defences, shut down security systems, pretty much anything in Eggman's bases or on his ships." He put it down and picked up what I initially thought was a hand held metal detector. "This is a motion sensor. It can detect any nearby movement and can even detect whether it's friendly or hostile."

"Yeah, we're definitely going to need that." I told him.

"Here are some handheld radios for us to keep in touch. The channel they use is secure so Eggman can't get into it, plus the signal can travel for miles so we shouldn't ever lose communication." He handed one to Shadow and the other to Sonic.

"You wouldn't happen to have a gun or something, would ya?" I asked, getting worried looks from everyone else.

"What for?" Tails questioned.

"Unlike these two…" I said whilst pointing to Sonic and Shadow. "… I don't have super speed and I can't homing attacking everything that moves." The fox put a hand to his chin and thought for a few seconds. "The only weapons I have ever built were specifically designed for Sonic's abilities. I don't have any traditional firearms."

"So… I'm screwed?" I gave a thumbs up and threw on my sarcastic smile.

"You could stay at the back and let us handle everything?" Espio suggested. I couldn't tell if he was being serious or not.

"Great… really contributing to the team there." I stated.

"It is either that or be shot dead. Your choice." Vector elbowed him in the arm, but that didn't reverse his prior comment.

"You'll have to figure it out when we get up there." Shadow jumped in, reminding the majority of us that he was still here. "Just remember that we are on a time limit."

"Alright, the Tornado is ready to go." Tails informed us. With that, we all said our goodbyes and good lucks before rushing out the door and heading on our way.

Our first stop was the desert. Vector, Espio and I joined Tails in his plane whilst Sonic and Shadow decided to race each other. Rouge flew alongside us since the fox obviously wasn't going at full speed. Vector and I were in the actual plane and Espio was sat on the wing.

"Vector, I was wondering…" I began, momentarily distracting him from looking at the city below us. "About where Nocturne and I came from, you haven't told anyone about that have you?" He immediately shook his head.

"Not at all! In fact, Espio was the one who told Charmy and I to keep it quiet." I gave him an odd look.

"Seriously?"

"Yes." The chameleon turned himself around. "That and the fact that you and your sister know far too much, in my opinion, about our world. You would both be an even bigger target for villains such as the doctor." That was the precise reason I brought it up. The fact that we were from another world, and not just any world, one which saw this one in a fictional light, practically made us a goldmine for knowledge on people's strengths, weaknesses, pasts and futures to some extent. We didn't know everything. That I wanted to make clear, but we knew enough about the characters we cared about to put them in danger. I just hoped Eggman didn't know that.

The journey to the desert came with no problems. However, travelling into it was not going to happen. We were forced to land to find that Sonic and Shadow were already there with the same issue; the sandstorm in the distance.

"I'm guessing you can't fly into this wall of sand?" Sonic asked the fox genius.

"It's far too dangerous, Sonic. The sand could damage vital systems and even cause us to crash. I can't risk that." The hedgehog nodded. While we were all discussing our next step, Shadow was deep in thought. He knew that something about this wasn't right.

"What is it?" Rouge asked once noticing the black mammal who was staring at the natural phenomenon.

"I don't think this sandstorm was caused naturally." He said, raising a brow from the bat next to him.

"You think Eggman has something to do with it?"

"Yes. I think he is creating it artificially in order to hide his fleet." Shadow explained.

"Sounds like something he would do, but how do we get past it?" Rouge asked.

"I could Chaos Control our group up there, then we could take out whatever is causing it, thus, allowing the others to fly up."

"That's a great idea!" Sonic praised after overhearing Shadow's thoughts.

"I could be wrong, you know." Shadow told him, but Sonic had faith, even if the Ultimate Lifeform didn't appreciate it.

"It's worth a try though, right? You take Rouge and Vector and disable Eggman's machinery!"

"What about the rest of us?" Espio questioned, his voice having a slight hint of irritation.

"You can stay put, can't you?" Shadow said to him with a sense of smugness that Espio loathed.

"You would love that, wouldn't you? Off being mister hero while we wait patiently."

"What's the matter, chameleon? Are you going to miss me while I'm gone?"

"I wouldn't miss you even if you were killed!" The ninja hissed at him.

"Whoa! Take it easy!" Sonic jumped between the two and held his arms out to keep them separated. The rest of us were speechless at how cold Espio had become towards the hedgehog. Shadow simply smirked before walking back to where he stood previously, while Espio was about to punch him in the face, something he knew wasn't normal for him.

"Shadow, what was that?" Rouge whispered to him.

"It's nothing. He's probably jealous that he can't show off his ninja skills to his new friend." The bat looked back at us with many ideas in her mind.

"Wait, you don't think-"

"Anyway, we have a job to do." Shadow cut her off and focused on their new task. The bat thief desperately wanted to dig deeper, but now was not the time.

I approached the chameleon and gently tapped him on the shoulder. He gave me a stern glare to begin with, but quickly softened when he saw it was me.

"I-I don't want to talk about it." He spoke quietly to avoid drawing more attention to himself. I nodded and let him walk away. I couldn't help but look back and forth between the two and wonder what happened before I got here. Whatever it was, it was still hurting Espio while Shadow didn't seem to care. Without realising, my expression grew into a glare, which the other hedgehog soon returned.

"_Not now. Deal with Eggman first, then you can figure out what the hell is going on."_ I agreed with the voices and returned to the Tornado while the other trio Chaos Controlled into the unknown.


	20. Ascended

**Hello again everyone! My apologies on the delay. Those of you who read the most recent chapter of _'The Honour Code'_ will know that I was very busy yesterday and simply didn't have the time to get this done. For those who didn't, that was why.**

**While I'm on the topic, I have some news. This chapter will be the last one that I will upload for a while. I have just graduated college and will be taking a break from fan fiction for a little while to try and get my life together. This is NOT the end of this story though. I WILL finish it, you have my word on that. In fact, I will likely still be writing it while I'm gone, I just won't be uploading and probably won't upload until I have written the rest of it.**

**For _'The Honour Code'_ readers, I will be uploading the last chapter next week but that will be the last thing I upload. This is what life does... and it sucks.**

**I cannot say when I will be back because I simply don't know. When I set myself deadlines, I can never stick to them. My best answer is that I'll come back when I'm ready, but this will be finished. I did not write this much just to leave it, plus I love this story. :3**

**I think that's all I have to say for now. I hope you all have a great summer and whatever else you might have planned. I will see you all sometime in the future!**

**Much love to you all! :)**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The clouds beneath them were stained yellow from the sandstorm. No ground of Mobius could be seen as it was blanketed by dust.

"We're pretty high up." Vector pointed out.

"Now is not the time for sight-seeing." Shadow reminded the other two who were taking in the view from the top of one of Eggman's ships. "We need to find out where this thing is being generated and take it out."

"How do we do that? There are ships everywhere. The source could be on any one of them." Despite the croc's concerns, Shadow had thought of one idea and got onto the radio.

"Tails, do you have one of your energy sensors with you?" The fox had a look of surprise. He didn't think Shadow had paid that much attention to their previous conversation.

"There's one in the Tornado. Why?"

"I need you to detect the exact point of this sandstorm generator. There is no way we are going to find it by just wandering around." Shadow told him.

"I'll try, give me a few minutes." The golden fox replied.

* * *

I watched as Tails came towards me and hopped into his plane.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Shadow needs help trying to find where this sandstorm is coming from. So, I'm using the sensor I have built into the Tornado to try and at least narrow it down." He explained to me.

"You can do that?" I knew the question was obvious, but in my mind, this stuff was like rocket science.

"This thing can do all sorts! Even go as far as digging out one energy signature from thousands!" His enthusiasm was enough to convey how proud he was of his creations. I had to smile at him.

"_I'm glad he has a purpose."_ I thought before suddenly feeling a sense of sadness. I looked at everyone who was still down here and realised they all had a reason for being here. Sonic, to stop Eggman; Tails, to aid Sonic with his advanced gadgets and Espio, to bring justice by working for the Chaotix. What was my reason? I only ended up here through a mix of curiosity and sheer luck, Nocturne too. Was I supposed to create a reason? Or was there one already there that I didn't know about? Perhaps there wasn't one at all and I had to live with it.

"There's a distinctly different signature not too far from your current location. I think you got lucky with the ship you landed on." Tails spoke which brought me from my thoughts.

"Understood." Shadow replied before things quietened once more. Tails jumped back down and returned to Sonic who was apparently getting ready for the battle ahead. I turned to Espio who was sat on the sand furthest away from us. Part of me wanted to go over to him, but he had already told me that he didn't want to talk. I should at least see if he's ok, right?

Ignoring my anxiety, I walked over and stood next to him, similar to when he did the same to me in the field during the rain.

"How're you doing?" I asked whilst looking down at him. He didn't look back and just stared out into the distance.

"Same as I was ten minutes ago." It was clear that he was still irritated. "Was there something you wanted?"

"I just wanted to check up on you and-"

"I am not your responsibility, hedgehog." His voice was bitter as if trying to mimic the edge of a knife. I felt suddenly vulnerable and had to get away from him.

"Ok… I'll leave you to it." With that, I walked swiftly away and sat by the Tornado where no one could see me.

"_I let my guard down way too much. He's not my childhood hero, he's not the guy I originally thought he was, he wants nothing to do with me and he's… not my friend."_

"Not now…" I whimpered as the voices grew in volume. "Not now…"

* * *

A thick metal door was torn off its hinges and made a colossal boom as it crashed upon the matching metal floor.

"So, we're standing firm on the 'keeping quiet' idea?" Rouge's sarcasm did not bode well with Vector's current mood.

"Well, what did you expect when trying to break down a door?!" He yelled in frustration.

"Alright, enough!" Shadow ordered. "The generator should be a few doors ahead. Let's keep going." They all walked into an enormous, empty room. Shadow found some odd familiarity to it. It was dark and none of them had a flashlight.

"Any ideas now?" Vector said, still annoyed from Rouge's earlier comments. The black hedgehog brought out his Chaos Emerald and allowed its eerie, red glow to shine off of a bit of metal jutting out from the wall in front of him.

"What is that?" He thought out loud as he took a step closer.

_SLAM!_

"Shadow?! What was that?! Are you ok?!" Rouge panicked after she and Vector were scared half to death.

"Don't. Move." Shadow said calmly. They did as instructed whilst giving each other puzzled looks. The mammal fixated his gaze on the sudden metallic wall that appeared before him. The wall slowly rose and Shadow's eyes followed it until he was staring at two glowing eyes that matched his own.

"Don't move?! Why not?!" Vector yelled. Lights flickered on all over the body of the beast that they could now see stood before them and the giant hammer it wielded in one hand.

"That's why!" Shadow shouted before teleporting out of the way as it brought the hammer down again.

"Hey! We've seen these things before!" Rouge exclaimed in realisation.

"Not at this size we haven't!" Shadow told her.

"Wasn't its weak point on its head?" Vector said, trying to remember from their previous encounters.

"That's right! Underneath its helmet!" Rouge pointed to the red, spiked helmet on top of its head.

"Stand back! I've got this!" Shadow skated in circles around the robot. It was so focused on him that it couldn't keep up and after a few moments, fell forward forcing Rouge and Vector to scatter out of the way of the falling hammer. Shadow leapt onto its head to try and pull the helmet off, but it wouldn't budge. "I could use a hand here!" He shouted to the other two who ran to his aid, but even with Tornado Kicks and full-force punches, the helmet would not move.

"Seems like the doctor improved the design of this thing." Rouge commented. Before they could think of a plan B, the metallic monster got back up and this time, focused on Vector. The bat flew up and out of the way only to see Shadow hanging like a rag doll off the back of the robot's helmet. "Are you alright there, hun?"

"I've been better!" He stated whilst flailing around. "Could you perhaps look for a weak spot?!"

"Sure thing. Vector has it distracted."

"Distracted?! Is that what you're calling this?!" The croc yelled at the top of his lungs whilst running in all directions trying to not be crushed. The other two were forced to ignore him for now and concentrate on the threat at hand. The bat first studied its legs to see if it could be brought down that way. No luck. They, like the rest of its body, were made of a sturdy metal which would simply deflect all attacks. Something on its back however, caught the bat's attention.

"Shadow! Can you see that thing sticking out of its back?"

"Only just. I'll try to grab it." He had to time it so that when he let go of the helmet, he would fall and grab onto its back. Shadow didn't hesitate and dropped once it brought its hammer back down. He held on with one hand and looked up. "I think it's a handle!" Shadow yelled.

"A handle for what?" Rouge questioned. This got the hedgehog thinking. He pulled his foot up and placed it on the robot's back, before using his strength to pull at the handle to see if it did anything. Suddenly, the handle gave way and a somewhat secret compartment was revealed. Rouge looked inside and noticed another robot inside of the giant one. "Hey!" She yelled, causing the robot pilot to turn and slowly face her. The thief grabbed its arm and yanked it out of the cockpit. Once thrown into a wall, the larger robot stopped moving as it had no one to command it.

Vector was hunched over with his hands on his knees, panting out of both fright and relief. Shadow dropped from the robot and looked up at its new driver.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Look at it this way, the rest of our journey is going to be a hell of a lot easier." Rouge replied in some vague attempt at reassurance.

"So, we're standing firm on the 'keeping quiet' idea?" Vector repeated Rouge's earlier remark only to be nearly met with a large and deadly hammer.

"Do you wanna argue now?!" She shouted through the robots speaker system. Vector stood with a terrified expression.

"N-no ma'am!"

"There's a good boy. Now then, shall we?" After figuring out the controls, Rouge slammed the robot's hammer through the door and half of the wall, only to reveal a long, outdoor walkway that led to the rear section of the ship. On either side of this, were two more suspended walkways that were lined with stationary cannons. Ahead of them was an army of robots, all of them with their weapons armed and ready. Vector and Shadow, who were stood just behind Rouge, gave each other blank looks before looking up at the bat.

"Now what?" Vector asked.

"Boys…" She began. "…Keep me covered." Before they could figure out what she meant, the robot charged forward with its hammer swinging wildly.

"What the hell did she mean by that?!" Vector shouted to Shadow above the noise.

"Take the cannons on the right! I've got the ones on the left!" The croc had no idea what was going on, but listened to the hedgehog's words and began to take out each cannon one at a time. Rouge meanwhile, was going crazy on the ocean of robots that stood before her. Every swing of her hammer sent a few dozen into orbit.

"_And I thought Amy was the one to watch out for…"_ Shadow thought as he ducked under a robot that came flying in his direction. Before getting nearly hit again, the hedgehog got back to homing attacking the cannons. Vector was using his brute strength to punch cannons into a state of no-repair. The battle seemed to be going well until their surroundings got suddenly dark.

"What's going on?!" Shadow demanded as if someone would magically give him an answer.

"Up there!" Vector shouted whilst pointing to a second battleship that had positioned itself overhead.

"Move! It's got a laser cannon!" Shadow jumped off of the cannon platform as did Vector while Rouge jumped out of the robot to run. Only a few seconds later did the laser charge and fire super-heated death upon the lower ship, causing it to blow up on impact, destroying everything on it.

* * *

We all collectively jumped when an almighty boom was heard. All of us looked to the sky to see the sandstorm gradually dying down and behind it, was an explosion of fire and smoke amongst the hundreds of ships.

"Shadow, do you read? Shadow, please respond!" Tails repeated himself on the radio but never got a response.

"What's going on?" Sonic asked.

"My sensors can't pick up the signal anymore and I'm not getting a reply from Shadow." He climbed down from the plane and looked to his big brother with a worried look. "From what I can tell, the ship they were on exploded. Maybe through self-destruct or something, I'm not sure."

"So, what about Shadow, Rouge and Vector?" I joined in with an expression that matched Tails'. He didn't say anything else and slowly shook his head. My mouth hung slightly.

"No… no way." Sonic chuckled nervously, not believing their fate. "He's done this act before. We'll see him again."

"Shadow may have, yes." I argued. "But what about Rouge and Vector? I don't remember them falling from the ARK." Sonic went unnaturally silent. We all did. I sighed and focused back on the reason why we were out here in the first place. "Look, they did their job, but now we have to do ours. Nocturne still needs us." Sonic and Tails both nodded.

"Just give me a minute to make sure everything is still working. That shockwave would have caused some major interference." The fox explained as he got into the Tornado to give everything a once over. Sonic stood nearby, still lost for words. I don't think I've ever seen him this quiet. My uneasy gaze then looked over to the distant chameleon. He was staring up at the now visible fleet. I first thought nothing of it; perhaps he was admiring the remains of the explosion? But if so, why was his bottom lip trembling?

How could I forget?! Vector! Of course! Shadow could have easily Chaos Controlled, but if so then…

"_That bastard better have not…"_ The voices were angry. I was angry. Espio likely was as well, but I imagine he would have been equally terrified, even if he never admitted it.

"All systems are good!" Tails informed us. We all got into the Tornado without a second to spare. Tails fired up the engine and quickly took off towards Eggman's fleet.

"Where are we headed?" Sonic questioned as he stood on the wing.

"Knowing Eggman, his ship would be the most obvious. It's usually the biggest one with the biggest moustache." It was odd, but true. The doctor had serious issues.

Once amongst the fleet, it was a stomach-churning journey as we dodged cannon fire. For a giant ship, it was hidden very well. Tails managed to find its location since it had a much larger energy signature than all the other surrounding ships. Soon enough, a drastically larger ship emerged with Eggman's face plastered all over it. A runway was clear at the front, but with all the cannons around it, the fox deemed it too dangerous to land.

"Sonic! Jump off and take out the cannons so we can land!" The blue blur nodded and took them out so fast that I couldn't comprehend what just happened. The fox landed the plane with ease and we all hopped out only to be greeted by grinning hedgehog himself.

"Piece of cake!" I admit, his smug attitude was probably more likely to make me throw up than the plane ride, but that's not the point. Sonic continued to destroy the robots ahead of us with the help of Espio. Tails followed them once the path was clear, but an idea came to mind. I stopped at one of the destroyed robots and noticed that its laser gun was still intact. Despite having no idea how to use it, I picked it up and ran ahead, hoping for a chance to test it out. Sure enough, another group of robots ran out of the ships interior to try and stop us. Before I could take a shot though, the other two destroyed them all.

"_Dammit!"_ I cursed in my head. We soon came to a laser grid that was blocking the path. The switch that controlled it was on the other side.

"I may be the fastest thing alive, but I cannot survive running through this." Sonic complained.

"I can handle this." Espio spoke up as he went invisible. A few seconds passed and the laser wall suddenly turned off with the chameleon revealing himself shortly afterwards, stood by the switch.

"How did you do that?" Tails asked in amazement.

"We need to keep moving." He said, ignoring Tails completely before turning and running off. He looked to Sonic who merely shrugged before doing the same. Everything was fine, we were making good progress until we came across the one thing that frightened me most about the Egg Fleet and Final Fortress missions; the grind rails. Just as I remembered, there was nothing underneath them to break your fall. It was just a thin, metal rail that connected two parts of the doctor's ship.

"No!" I shouted, rejecting the rail completely.

"What is it?" Sonic asked.

"I am NOT setting a foot on that thing!" I said defiantly.

"Why not?" The fox continued to question.

"…Because I'll fall and die."

"You are scared of heights, aren't you?" Espio said as if he already knew.

"Shut up!" I could see his amber eyes roll at my fear. "Jerk." I whispered.

"Can't you fly her across, Tails?" Sonic suggested.

"Not that far, Sonic. Sorry."

"Do you want to save your sister or not?" Espio said sternly as if trying to boost some sort of hidden confidence.

"Not like this!" I sat on the floor just to make sure that I wouldn't fall off by some unseen force.

"You two go on ahead. We'll catch up." Espio told them. Whatever he was planning, I was not doing it.

"Are you sure?" Tails questioned with a clear nervousness. The ninja nodded and the pair grinded effortlessly along the rail.

"Now, then…" He began. I looked up at him with a deadly serious expression. "Grinding is very simple."

"For you, maybe! I've never done it in my life!" I reminded him.

"I cannot just leave you here."

"Why not?" I stood back up and stared at him angrily in the eyes. "I'm not your responsibility." My voice was cold and Espio knew right away what I was referring to. His expression conveyed the same hatred that I was conveying to him.

"Fine. If that's how you want to play this then so be it." He walked towards the rail and placed one foot on it.

"Good! Just go! You don't need me and I sure as shit don't need you!" He stopped and for a moment, I was sure that he was going to turn around, but he didn't. Espio pushed himself with his other foot and grinded away along the rail, leaving me to fend for myself whilst being stranded. I watched him disappear into the distance as tears quickly surfaced. "God fucking dammit…" I scolded myself before beginning to walk back the way I came.

I kept quiet despite trembling with fear that some robot would jump out. My little laser rifle was raised, hoping that it wouldn't malfunction. So far, everything was clear whilst walking back through the interior corridors. The lasers were still off and bits of robot were still scattered along the floor. I used the skills I had seen or learned from the video games I had played to help me remain calm. Checking round corners, looking behind you, keeping your weapon handy and all that.

I peeked my head around another corner only to see sunlight and the Tornado in the distance. Without thinking, I ran towards it only to stop dead in my tracks when a familiar robot descended in front of me. It had golden armour and was equipped with an energy cannon on one arm and a shield on the other. If my memory served me correctly, Omega called these things the E-2000's. Just from playing the game, I knew how dangerous these things were. Running would be pointless, since that cannon had a ridiculous range and there was no cover because all of the cannons had been taken out earlier. The mech focused entirely on me with its piercing, yellow eyes. It lowered its shield and began to charge its gun. I held up my rifle whilst fear caused my entire body to shake uncontrollably. I stared with rage, but behind my mask, I was truly scared.

If I was going down, then I was going down fighting.


	21. Sacrificial Bond

**Four months later and here we are!**

**Welcome back everyone! 'Welcome Home' is now officially off hiatus and back to weekly updates!**

**Why did it take so long? Well, I couldn't settle on an ending. I ended up re-writing it four times (One for each month, I guess), before finally settling on the ending that I have now. I also did some new cover art for it! You know, to make it all pretty? :3**

**It's been a while and I want to thank you all for your patience. However, because I have written the ending in advance, I can guarantee that (Unless the world ends or something) it won't be delayed or put on hiatus again! There will be a chapter every week until it is finished!**

**I've said this before, but I would like to give a very special thanks to ElectroDGX! He has stuck around since the very beginning and I appreciate it to no end! You're awesome!**

**With that said and done, I hope you enjoy the chapter and as per usual, I will see you all next week!**

**Have a good weekend!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

"You intrigue me greatly." A tall man said as he observed the still chameleon. She said and did nothing in response; just continued to stare blankly at the same spot she had been for a while now. "Do you have any idea of what you are capable of?" Again, nothing. The sinister doctor chuckled at her lack of emotion. "Hopefully your friends will be here soon. They, as well as yourself, have a lot to learn." An evil grin remained on his face as he walked back into a smaller room that was connected to the one Nocturne was being held in.

It was a large open room with very little in it. The cold, metal walls were a dull crimson in colour and echoed excessively with every footstep. The reptile hung like a rag doll by her wrists, while the doctor sat in an over-sized office chair behind the reinforced glass. Hidden within his navy glasses, he watched her intently with the same smirk, waiting patiently for the other Mobians to arrive. He may have only summoned Shadow, but he knew the Freedom Fighters too well to realise that the rest of them would follow.

As if somehow hearing his thoughts, a brilliant flash of light caught the madman's attention. Once it faded, three Mobians were left in its wake.

"Where are we?" Vector was the first to ask, but a voice on an intercom soon gave him his answer.

"Welcome!" He greeted.

"Over there!" Shadow called out, pointing to Nocturne, who still had not moved.

"Ah, ah, ah." The doctor teased. "Take another step and the chameleon will fall." As he said this, he pushed a button, which opened a large door directly underneath her. The three arrivals stared angrily at Eggman, while Nocturne looked down. Nothing but blue greeted her sight, with many clouds dotted within it. On the surface, she didn't react, but with closer inspection, her breathing had quickened dramatically.

"You bastard." Shadow cursed under his breath.

"Is that why you took her? Just to drop her to oblivion right in front of us?" Rouge questioned, trying to figure out the doctor's motive.

"While I could easily do that, my dear Rouge, there is a much more intriguing reason as to why I captured your friend."

"What is that reason?" The black hedgehog was beginning to lose his patience, but Eggman was going to make the most of this rare opportunity.

"All will be revealed…" He paused and grinned at the trio. "…once the others get here."

* * *

My eyes were fixated on the glow of the cannon. I subconsciously began to back away, despite knowing that it would do me no good. I suddenly snapped out of my trance and pulled the trigger, praying that this would work like the weapons I had seen. While it worked flawlessly, the robot's armour deflected each and every laser. I had no other options now. I didn't care anymore. I turned tail and ran. Before I could take so much as a few steps, the robot suddenly exploded, sending me flying a fair few feet and landing hard on the metal surface of the ship's deck. I took a few seconds to make sure that I was still alive, before lifting my head to instantly recognise the red and white sneakers that were stood in front of me.

Sonic held out his hand. A warm smile was on his face to let me know that everything was okay. I was still shaken up, but grabbed his hand anyway. Once I was back on my feet, he spoke.

"Are you alright?" I merely nodded. Any words I had, abandoned me long ago. "Espio caught up with us and told us what happened." I ignored his last words and looked at the area of black where the robot used to be. I could only assume that Sonic had destroyed it while its shield was lowered. The situation repeated itself over and over in my head, whilst I stared at the darkened spot. Tails' voice soon brought me back and I turned to see him running up to us both.

"Are you okay?!" I nodded again. The fox expressed his concern clearer than Sonic; then again, Sonic seemed to have a levelled head in those frantic situations. Looking past Sonic's sidekick however, I saw Espio. He was stood some distance away from us, with his eyes firmly fixed upon me. A sudden and unfamiliar hatred sparked and with it, came the coldest glare that I think I had ever done.

"Hey, you still with us?" Sonic asked as he nudged me in the shoulder. Another nod. He must have thought that I was still in a bit of shock and didn't question me further. "Good. We should get going. I can carry you across those rails, if you like?"

"_Why didn't he bring that up before?"_ Regardless, I still felt like the helpless maiden that couldn't do anything, which right now, was true. I needed the others to help me and I hated it. _"Once this is over…"_ I thought angrily.

We all made our way to the centre of the Egg Carrier. Every encounter with robots involved me standing back and the other three destroying them, just as Espio had said before we left. My anger grew at the thought. I soon followed once the coast was clear. The cycle repeated until we ran into a huge door.

"Any ideas?" Sonic asked Tails, who brought out one of his little gadgets.

"Like I said before, this device can hack anything." He fiddled with a few buttons and dials. The small black box beeped a few times and the door echoed as it opened. We were all ready for some kind of trap, until we saw three Mobians staring back at us with similar fighting stances.

"Look who decided to show up." Rouge joked as we approached. Espio walked up to Vector with a relieved look.

"Thank Chaos, you're alright."

"Don't count me out yet, Es. Shadow got us off of that ship before it blew up." Vector explained. The chameleon nodded and gave a quick glare to the hedgehog in question. Shadow noticed and just smirked back at him, causing the usually calm reptilian to growl to himself.

"Sonic!" Tails yelled as he pointed over to the restrained chameleon on the wall.

"Nocturne!" I shouted and began to run forward. I didn't get very far though, as a tight grip on my arm stopped me from going anywhere. I looked back to see Shadow shaking his head and gesturing to the floor. My eyes followed his until they caught sight of an opening. I froze upon realisation, at which point Shadow let me go.

"There's a good hedgehog." Eggman spoke whilst locked in his nice, cosy room.

"You son of a bitch!" I spat at him.

"Temper, temper. I'd watch your tone, if you want your friend here to live." I growled loudly, but stayed where I was.

"The others are here now, doc." Vector spoke. "Are you finally gonna tell us what the hell is going on?" We each stared at Eggman as he chuckled.

"But of course, Vector! I shall keep my word." He stood from his chair and kept his hands behind his back. "The last time we met, you rudely crashed my Egg Mobile. This time however, let's get properly acquainted. I am Dr. Eggman; scientific genius and future ruler of this world. It is very nice to meet you, Arby, and your sister, Nocturne."

"Stop wasting our time." Shadow interrupted. "What is it that we 'needed to learn'?" I gave the other hedgehog an odd look before the doctor continued.

"Very well, I shall get straight to the point. Arby, do you have any idea of what your sister can do?" I raised a brow in suspicion and slowly shook my head. "Allow me to demonstrate." A bright spotlight was switched on and was aimed at Nocturne.

"What is he doing?" Tails wondered, as did the rest of us. A noise from above collectively got our attention and we watched as a giant crossbow lowered from the ceiling. Within it, was an explosive arrow.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Shadow yelled fiercely. Without warning, the crossbow fired and the bolt exploded upon impact.

"NOCTURNE!" I screamed. As if knowing I was about to dash forward, Vector grabbed me and pulled me back. I struggled against him as best I could, but he was far stronger than I was. None of us could see anything.

"You murderous piece of-"

"Now, now, Shadow. Before you start throwing names, take a second and look." Eggman spoke calmly. We all remained quiet and waited for the smoke to clear. Once it did though, each of our jaws dropped one at a time. The wall was entirely blackened and the arrow lay shattered around the open doorway. Nocturne was unscathed.

Eggman soon explained what just happened, since the rest of us were utterly speechless. "This chameleon has developed a unique ability that seems to have originated from the native chameleons of your world."

"Your world?" Everyone, but the Chaotix said in unison.

"Oh? Did I miss out that little detail? Not so long ago, I was running an experiment to see if I could travel to other worlds in search of powerful beings to aid me in conquering this one. Instead of me going to them, one portal brought two of them here." Shadow, Rouge, Sonic and Tails slowly began looking at me, amazed at what they had just heard. "After some research, it appears that they are from a very distant planet in a solar system of nine. They come from the third planet closest to their star. It is inhabited by humans and wild animals, one of which, being the chameleon."

"But, if they're from a human world, then why are they Mobian?" Tails asked, who was clearly curious about the subject.

"That I am uncertain. I can only guess that it was something to do with the portal. Back to the point, the chameleons of their world would use the UV rays from their star in order to keep their skin and bones healthy. Nocturne has taken that evolutionary ability and advanced it. When under the UV lamp, her skin and horns become more like armour and nothing, not even explosives can get through it."

"That's- that's unbelievable!" Tails couldn't get his head around it, any of it.

"That's not possible." Espio growled.

"The proof is right in front of you." Eggman reminded him.

"So what? Are you going to use her as a brick wall or something?" Shadow questioned.

"I merely wanted to find out a little more about her. She is vastly different from her sibling over there. Her mind works differently. She has been in some sort of emotionless state lately, am I correct?" Shadow and I nodded. "There is a way to bring her out of it. It's not a good way, but it is_ a_ way."

"What is it?" I asked desperately. The doctor simply laughed at my concern and went back to being mister bad guy.

"I think that's enough of this lesson for today. I'm sure you can figure it out for yourselves. As for her, she is of no use to me while in this state. Perhaps when she is brought out of it, I can use her to my advantage. Until then, goodbye." Before any of us knew what was going on, Eggman pulled on a lever, which loosened the chains.

"Shit!" Shadow yelled as Nocturne dropped through the hole in the floor. Without thinking, I ran forward with the intention of jumping through with her. Once again though, Vector dove forward and stopped me from potentially killing myself. In the panic of the moment, Shadow and Rouge both ran forward and jumped out of the ship.

"Shadow!" Espio yelled. His sudden concern definitely caught my attention. I was sure that he hated the guy, so, why the sudden worry? I wasn't the only one distracted by this. Vector also looked over to the chameleon with a brow raised. It was only a momentary distraction, before I started screaming with rage at the doctor.

"You fucking asshole! I'll fucking kill you! I swear to-"

_-SELF DESTRUCT SEQUENCE INITIATED-_

Eggman waved to us through the window before walking through another door and out of the room.

"We need to go! Now!" Tails warned us. Vector picked me up and we all began to run back to the Tornado. Robots were frantically fleeing all over the ship, ignoring us as we ran past them. Sonic was obviously the first to get to the plane and knew enough to start the engine to save time. We all followed. Tails leapt into the pilot's seat, Vector and I sat in one seat behind whilst Espio sat in the second and Sonic stayed on the wing. The fox pressed multiple buttons in one seamless movement. The Tornado soon began travelling up the ship's long deck, before the rubber left metal.

It felt as if moments passed before the ship's demise took over the skies. The heat could be felt even from the distance we were at. Vector kept a tight hold on me as I wept and shook within his arms. Sonic looked back at us with a saddened look. I didn't notice it as my face was buried. Another detail I missed was Espio, who seemed to have a look of guilt upon him. He would stare at the open sky surrounding us, but every now and then he would glance to the seat in front, only to feel that same stab return to his chest.

* * *

_Several Days Later…_

* * *

We were at home. What else could I say? The atmosphere was quiet and even a little cold. Cold? It was the middle of freaking summer! Why the heck was it cold? A door slowly opened upstairs and since Vector and Charmy were down here, I knew who it was.

"_Oh yeah, that's why."_ I kept my eyes upon the book I happened to find in the closet under the stairs and completely ignored the soul who had just entered the room.

"Hey Es." Vector greeted. The chameleon gave a respectful nod before making his way downstairs.

"I'm going to be heading out for a while." He announced, but Vector was quick to question him.

"Are you alright? You've been 'heading out' a lot more often ever since we got back." The chameleon gave a barely noticeable glance towards me before refocusing. I couldn't have cared less whether I noticed it or not.

"I'm fine, no need to worry." He stated calmly as he left out of the front door.

"Alright Arb, what was that?" Vector asked me. Did he notice?

"What was what?"

"That look Espio just gave you. On top of that, you have been oddly quiet towards him." I really didn't want to talk about it or _him_ for that matter. While his statement was true, I chose to pretend that I didn't know.

"How should I know? Espio can do what he wants. That's nothing to do with me." I had a feeling my answer only made him all the more suspicious. Either way, he didn't go any further with the subject. Charmy though, had also noticed the change in my behaviour and was keeping more of an eye on me that any of us realised.

* * *

A few hours had passed. Today was quiet-no, deadly silent. Most days at Chaotix were quiet,_ that_ I was used to, but today it had a hint of awkwardness. It was as if we had become all the more stranger since the events on the Egg Carrier. We were all sat watching the TV. Well, I was listening to music and not really paying attention. The front door opened only for the atmosphere to become instantly worse.

Espio had finally returned from his sudden routine outing. Vector and Charmy both greeted him and he gave a nod with a small smile in return. His next destination was his room, that was where he spent most of his time these days, but to get there, he had to walk past the TV, which meant walking in front of me. Nothing major, at least not in my eyes. The ninja stopped for a second and looked at me with a blank expression. It didn't take long for my uncaring look to become one of ice. I wanted to say something, but that would've been too easy. Instead, I made him choke on his own medicine. An irritated sigh escaped me as I got up.

"I'm going out." I said bitterly as I walked to the door and slammed it behind me. Espio was lost for words as he stared at the door with a saddened look. Vector was going to get answers out of him this time.

"What the hell was that, Es?"

"It's noth-"

"Don't lie to me." His voice was stern, but not angry. He was just worried that this period of silence was going to erupt. "She hasn't said a word to you since we got home from the Egg Fleet. Meanwhile, you have been looking guilty of murder whenever she's in the same room as you. I know something happened, just please tell me what it was." He couldn't escape this time. Espio sat on the couch next to Charmy. Vector joined them and sat opposite. The chameleon explained the events that unfolded whilst the croc wasn't around.

* * *

_A Few Minutes Later…_

* * *

"You did what?!" Charmy exclaimed.

"I don't get it. You're the most patient chameleon I know." Vector reminded him.

"I could not agree more, but for some reason she irritated me; so much so that I was willing to leave her almost defenceless on the Egg Carrier."

"She could've been killed, Es!" The croc continued. Espio's shortened temper was once again becoming an issue.

"You think I had not thought of that? I feel terrible for it! What do you expect me to do?!"

"Don't be like that, Espio. You know what you did was wrong." His temper had run out.

"Yes, of course, because everything I do is wrong! Is that right?! Ever since she got here, everything she has done has been so perfect that she can do nothing that pisses you off! Chaos forbid if I could ever do something like that!"

"Espio, that's not it at all-"

"Then what the hell is it?! It is clear that we cannot be here together! You put her first despite everything I've done! Despite the many years that I have practically served you for little to no reward!" Charmy was cowering under the table as the two continued to argue. "If she's so damn important, then maybe I should just go!"

"What?! No, Espio! I don't want you to-" A slam silenced the two of them and their attention was suddenly drawn to the front door. Charmy ran out from under the table and hid behind me. I stood with a fierce glare.

"What the fuck is going on?" I growled angrily at the pair.

"Oh look, if it isn't miss perfect."

"Cut the crap, Espio." I said coldly. "Why are you two arguing like this?"

"Genius over here thinks that you're more important than he is." Vector mocked, only irritating the chameleon further.

"It's true, isn't it? If it was a life or death situation then you would save her over me!"

"Enough!" I yelled at them both. My expression softened to one of concern. "This is ridiculous. You guys are a team, or better yet, a family, and you're both stood here practically at each other's throats, scaring Charmy to the point where he felt the need to hide from you." The two gave each other a guilt-stricken glance, but said nothing. "Look, I can't bear to see you guys fight, especially if I'm the cause." I looked straight at Espio and he looked straight at me. "This is your home, Es." His eyes narrowed. "Yeah, I called you Es. Get over it." The smaller reptile folded his arms like a child that had just been told off. "Anyway, you were here long before I came into the picture. If anyone should go… then it should be me."

"What?" The three of them said in unison.

"You guys… are the greatest friends I've ever had, even you, Es." The chameleon of the subject was looking around the room, trying his best to not look at me. "I'll be damned if I'm just going to sit here while you tear each other apart."

"But… where would you go?" Vector asked. I could only shrug my shoulders.

"I have no idea, but I can figure something out." The others didn't look convinced and in all honesty, I wasn't either. I had never been homeless before, never mind in a big, dangerous city. If anything, I was absolutely terrified, but I couldn't let the others know that. I reached into my jacket pocket and took out 250 rings. Three pairs of eyes widened as I handed them to Vector.

"Arb?" The croc just about managed to say.

"This was from the museum mission, remember? You gave us all 300, I only spent 50. Consider it a thank you for everything you've done for me." Vector was speechless, but he handed me back 50 and spoke before I could argue.

"Take it, please. For food and stuff, yeah? Consider it thanks, right?" His voice was noticeably softer. He was worried and for a good reason, but this was for the best. I gently put the rings in my pocket before I was suddenly pulled into a tight hug from the big croc himself. Due to my height, he had to pick me up, but I was very grateful nonetheless. "You be careful out there, alright?"

"Sure thing." I told him.

"No! You can't go! You can't leave because of this jerk!" A high-pitched voice shouted from behind me. Vector put me down, so I could talk to him.

"Charmy, everything will be alright." My voice was trembling now, trying to comfort Charmy made me realise how much I was going to miss the little guy. "It's not like I'm going to be far. Once I've settled in somewhere, maybe I can visit." The young bee was crying and so was I. He threw his arms around me and I did the same to him. "You'll be fine, ok? I don't want you blaming Espio for this."

"But it's his fault!" He cried.

"No… it's mine." I whispered. "You be nice to him. He's your big brother after all." Something about that last comment hit Espio where it hurt. The chameleon walked upstairs, heading for his room, but then stopped and looked back over the banister.

With some willpower, I let Charmy go and said my goodbyes. Three depressed faces looked back at me as I turned and left the building.

"_At least the weather's good."_ I thought. With once last glance, I walked away from my former home and out into the city.


	22. Inner Darkness

**Happy Halloween! Finally, a holiday that I actually like. The fact that it's on a Saturday is the best coincidence. Nocturne will be happy about it.**

**Anyway, here is Chapter 22. This was a fun one to write, so I hope you all enjoy it! I hope you enjoy your Halloween also!**

**I don't have much else to say, my life is exciting, huh?**

**Have a great weekend and I'll see you again in a week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

An uneasy silence lasted between the trio. Vector stared aimlessly at the floor. Espio's gaze was upon the 6 year-old, who looked as if he was about to kill him. The croc soon noticed this.

"How- how could you?" Charmy asked with his voice being full of disappointment. The chameleon couldn't say anything. "How could you just stand there in silence and let her go?!"

"Charmy, take it easy." Vector tried to calm him, but the child was not going to be quiet this time.

"No! I will not 'take it easy'! Look at what he's done! It's because of him that Arby left!"

"I thought she told you not to blame me?" The ninja said in his defence.

"That's because she was so nice to you that you could get away with anything! Even taking away her home!" The bee stormed upstairs, straight past Espio and into his room, slamming the door behind him.

"He's just upset, Es." Vector tried to soften the blow, but Espio knew all too well that it was because of him that she left, even if she didn't want it to be.

"He's right though." The chameleon admitted.

"She'll be alright. She could easily go to Sonic or the others for a place to stay. It's not like she had no options." He nodded and silently went into his room.

Once his door had closed, Espio crashed onto his bed and stared at the ceiling.

"_She's stubborn; she wouldn't come back even if Vector offered it to her. She said she would be fine out there, in the city, alone, with nothing to defend herself from the countless gangs, thugs and- What am I doing?! At least give it a few days. I'm sure she'll be back."_ Espio refused to think about it and tried to get to sleep.

* * *

It was getting dark. Was it that late into the day already? I had to find somewhere safe to stay for the night. I wandered through the city. It was harder to find my way around when it was nothing but street lights; scarier too.

At the end of the street, were a few people. They all appeared to be in black hoodies. I knew better than to assume, but my gut was telling me to get out of sight. It was odd though; I thought they only came out once the sun had set, like monsters in the darkness. I saw an alley to my right. On one of the buildings was the fire escape, which led to the roof. Thankfully, a nearby dumpster and some discarded boxes allowed me to reach up and grab the ladder. I pulled it down quietly and climbed up it. Once up, I brought it up with me, so that no one could follow. I then ascended the steel stairs until I made it to the roof and was graced with the sight of the city skyline.

Skyscrapers were partially lit up by the lights of the streets that they towered over. My gaze travelled upwards to the endless amount of stars that were scattered across the night sky. It was truly beautiful and allowed me to momentarily forget the situation I was in.

"_I can stay here, at least for tonight. No one should find me."_ It was all I had for now as I settled next to one of the filthy air vents and used my arm as a pillow. _"I hope the others are okay."_ I thought before forcing my eyes shut.

* * *

_Four Days Later…_

* * *

I should've known my luck was too good to be true. As a result of the glorious weather, an electrical storm had begun late in the evening. I could only assume that it was going to last all night, which meant no chance of sleep.

Storms didn't bother me during the day, as long as I was indoors. Right now however, I was outside with nowhere to go and it was dark; very dark. This portion of the city had lost power some amount of time ago. I didn't exactly have a watch and the clock tower was too far for me to see with the wall of rain that crashed down upon the land. I was forced to stay on the rooftop trying, but failing to cover myself with my jacket. I guess having large quills had its downsides.

With bad weather, came bad emotions. I was convinced that the sudden change was something that I deserved. That was usually how my luck ran. I abandoned the life that I had to come here, without giving as much as a second thought about saying goodbye. Once here, I joined Chaotix and with time, nearly drove the trio apart. Nocturne, once a voice in my head who tormented me and comforted me all the same, was lost because she was forced into a way of life that she couldn't handle. I forced her.

My legs dangled over the roof's edge as I sat and allowed the rain to literally drown my sorrows. With the roars of thunder that each threatened to give me a heart attack, I had no idea that someone was walking up behind me.

"Why so glum, buttercup?"

"_B-buttercup?!"_ I turned quickly to the sight of dark green boots that had a black stripe running down each of them. My eyes followed the figure upwards until they met with two psychotic-looking, bright green eyes.

"N-n-n-n…"

"Do you need a minute for your English to come back to you?" She laughed loudly at my reaction before sitting down next to me. I still couldn't say anything.

"Not even a 'hello'?"

"W-w-what-wha…"

"Need more time?" I snapped out of it with an irritated sigh.

"I thought you were dead!" I shouted at her above the storm.

"Me?" She laughed some more. "Pah-lease! I was merely traumatised for a few days. I'm fine now, though." She smirked evilly at me, which prompted me to question further.

"So, you're just magically fine after being dropped thousands of feet from the Egg Carrier?"

"Well, Shadow and Rouge grabbed a hold of me. Shadow then teleported us to his place, which is where I stayed. I didn't move or speak for several days until today. Did he not tell you?" I shook my head madly.

"No! We haven't seen or heard from any of you since then!"

"That reminds me, why are you out here of all places? Shouldn't you be at Chaotix?" A lump formed in my throat at the sudden mention. Nocturne easily noticed my expression and placed an oddly comforting hand on my shoulder. "You alright?"

"…I left." I told her bluntly.

"What?! Seriously?! Why?!" The chameleon then paused and a glare appeared. "Wait, let me guess. One word: Espio."

"Well…"

"That son of a bitch! He drove you out, didn't he?! I'll fucking kill him!" I placed my hands on her shoulders and looked at her right in the eyes.

"No! That's not it at all!" I took a breath and calmed a little. "I chose to leave. They were all fighting and… it was just better for them, ok?" Nocturne stared back at me with an unfamiliar sadness.

"Look at you, bravely giving up your only home so that they could be happier and what do you get? Hypothermia from sitting out in the middle of a raging storm! This isn't right, Arb! But now, we can make it right." I gave her an odd look as she stood up. A sudden glow of red light began to shine from behind her back as she pulled out a Chaos Emerald. My jaw dropped. I was lost for words yet again. "You were wondering how I 'magically' recovered?" Her grin grew, accompanied by a sadistic chuckle. "Well, have I got a story for you!"

* * *

_Flashback_

A knock came at the door. Shadow huffed, but got up and unlocked it, allowing the bat girl to walk inside.

"How's she doing?" Her voice showing that trace of concern.

"No better." He stated dryly. The black and red chameleon had not moved from the couch ever since she was Chaos Controlled here by the hedgehog himself. She had not spoken, eaten or anything. Shadow had stayed with her in case her state changed, but so far, she had showed no signs of recovery.

"I've been thinking…" Rouge began as she approached the window and leaned on it. Shadow sat back down on the table in front of Nocturne. "…Eggman said that there was a way to bring her out of this state, right?"

"I've been thinking about that as well." Shadow admitted. "I just have no idea what that would be."

"Maybe we just haven't thought about it enough. Have you tried anything?" The dark mammal shook his head, keeping his eyes upon the motionless reptilian.

"Do you think maybe her sister could bring her out of it?" Rouge was quick to shake off the idea.

"I doubt it, she's been around her sister before this and nothing changed there. Perhaps I could do something?" The bat suggested.

"I don't think making out with her is going to be the way forward." The thief frowned at his response. Shadow thought more about her condition. It was mental, not physical, meaning that medicine likely wouldn't do anything. Another thought quickly came to mind. It seemed obvious, but it was better than nothing. "Do you think my Chaos Emerald could do anything?" The hedgehog asked.

"Its perfect beauty could bring me out of a coma any day." Shadow rolled his eyes. He got out the shining, red jewel and held it in the palm of his hand. Time seemed to stand still as Nocturne's gaze stared hard at the precious gem.

Her mind was doing backflips and her body began to tremble just by looking at it. Seeing the emerald was enough to trigger something within the chameleon that hadn't happened before, despite previously being around the emerald at the museum. Regardless, she took full advantage of the pair having their guard down and moved like lightning from the couch to pin Shadow to the ground. The hedgehog easily kicked her off of him, but she had already gotten a hold of her prize. Nocturne used Shadow's momentum to get to Rouge and pin her against the window. Before either of Team Dark could react, the newly energised chameleon created a fireball in her hand and held it dangerously close to the trapped bat.

"Now then…" Nocturne began while the other two were lost for words. "…I have a deal to make with you." Shadow held a fiery glare. His breathing was heavy as he tried to contain his rage. "You are going to tell me where the other six Chaos Emeralds are." Her grin never ceasing.

"Why the fuck would I do that?!" He growled with a sharp hatred to his words.

"Because, if you don't…" She didn't finish and instead, held the fireball closer to the bat thief, who in turn, leaned back further into the window. "…I think you know what'll happen."

Shadow was between a rock and a hard place. If he didn't tell her where they were, then Nocturne would surely end Rouge right in front of him. He may not have been around the chameleon long, but he had seen enough of her behaviour to know that mercy was not a part of her personality. If she said, or implied in this case, that she was going to do something, then she wasn't afraid to do it. On the other hand, if he did tell her, then she would be a huge threat, not only to the city, but potentially the rest of the world judging by the abilities she could summon with just one.

* * *

_Present Day_

I stood next to her with a look that showed a mix of anger and disappointment.

"I can't believe you, Nocturne! How could you do that?! Especially after they saved your life!" She just shrugged and smirked.

"You know that I'm not the most compassionate person out there. You're the only one I give a shit about; even I give more of a shit about myself." I sighed and rubbed my head.

"Whatever, so I'm assuming Shadow told you where the emeralds are being kept?" Shadow cared about Rouge enough to keep her out of harm's way; whether he admitted it or not. So, Nocturne threatening her life would likely be enough to get the information out of him.

"He did. He screamed it to me in fact. It was awesome!" I paid her little attention as she became a little giddy. "Then, I killed her."

Time froze. What did she just say? My buzz saw eyes slowly moved towards hers, with my head following them.

"Wha-wha..."

"Seriously, you gotta tie a leash to your English. It keeps running away from you." Her voice was so calm and casual, my mind couldn't comprehend it.

"You did… you did what?" The chameleon gave me a confused look before repeating herself in a louder voice.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it must be the storm. I said that I killed her." I stayed quiet and any colour that hadn't been drained from my freezing state had been drained from what I had just heard. How could she be this calm?! Did she truly have no remorse for what she had done?!

"You. Did. WHAT?!" A rage erupted from me as I screamed in her face. "WHY?! He fucking told you what you wanted to know, didn't he?!" She didn't seem the least bit phased by my outburst and just laughed it off.

"Well yeah, but you know she was going to help him to get this thing back. I couldn't just let her live. That would've been way too easy." I blinked rapidly. I just couldn't understand. My rage trickled away like the rainfall that had drenched me and all that was left was utter disappointment.

"Nocturne…" I begged, trying to make her see some kind of sense. "How could you just end a life like that?"

"What do you mean? She's not the first." My stomach began to churn.

"Umm… what?" My voice had been reduced to a loud whisper by this point.

"Do you remember that time you somehow got into my mind?" I nodded slowly. "Well Shadow, Rouge and I were storming G.U.N. HQ at the time. That's why I couldn't tell you where we were. You should have seen it, Arb! It was a fucking massacre! I even brought down a military chopper!" Her voice was full to the brim with excitement. It disgusted me thoroughly. "Anyway, now that I know where the other six are, do you want to come with me to get them?" I raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Where are they?"

"You'll see." She smiled and held out her hand whilst gripping the emerald in the other.

"You-you can Chaos Control?" I asked.

"Well duh. How do you think I got here?"

"How did you know I was here to begin with?" She put on a playful smile and started swaying from side to side.

"I might have… read your thoughts."

"Oh, for fuck's sake." I groaned.

"Come on! Like I could just walk up to Chaotix and ask! It would have done me no good since you were out here anyway!" My psychotic sister had a point, but that didn't make any of this better. Without another word, she held out her hand again.

"What's it like?" She gave me an odd look at first, but then figured out what I was referring to.

"What? Chaos Control? It's great! It is literally just 'you're in one place and then you're in another'. It doesn't hurt or anything, I swear."

"_You'd probably get some sick pleasure out of it anyway, if it did."_ I thought. Right now though, I had no other options. Perhaps I could find a way to convince her out of using them. I couldn't just let her have her way with the seven gems that supposedly could create miracles… or Armageddon in this case. I held onto Nocturne's hand without looking at her and in a flash, we were gone.

* * *

I couldn't explain it. It was like I had just witnessed a TV show switch from one set to another in an instant. It was completely dark, except from Shadow's –well Nocturne's, I guess- emerald.

"Where are we?" I asked, but Nocturne already knew. Her grin made me nervous.

"I'll show you." She replied. Our footsteps echoed along the metal flooring. Were we in one of Eggman's abandoned bases? I didn't say a word and just took in where I was. Nocturne led me down a flight of stairs before we were in a square room with four more corridors leading off of it. One in front, one behind and two either side. The chameleon shrugged and walked ahead. I don't think she knew where she was going either. I followed regardless. She poked her head through one of the seven doors that I could see. "Nope." She sang before continuing.

"Where the hell are we going?" I questioned impatiently.

"I don't exactly know where it is. I'm only going by what I've seen."

"Where what is?"

"You'll find out. I want it to be a surprise." With a grunt, I stayed silent and aimlessly followed her around, as if she was my master or something. I couldn't get that title out of my head.

"_Murderer."_ She had been one longer than I had ever thought, since keeping her trip to G.U.N. a secret. I'm not sure if she had any idea how serious that was. How many people did she kill there? How many fathers, mothers, sons and daughters had she taken from their families? A single tear fell, but I was quick to wipe it away. Nocturne was too busy looking for whatever it was to notice anyway.

"HAHA! No way!" I looked up to see her beckoning for me to follow. With a deep breath, we entered a large and empty room. There was a long, curved wall at the far end that had a window running along it. Why did this place seem so familiar? "Perhaps this will give you your answer." Nocturne was stood by the window looking back at me. With several slow steps, I approached until my breath was taken away by the sight. I could not believe where we were. I didn't dare to blink, so that my mind could take in what I was looking at. Not too far below us was a large, blue planet; Mobius. This could only mean one thing.

We were on the ARK.

"H-how are we not dead?" I stuttered with my eyes still glued to our new home world.

"Did you not watch Sonic X? We're Mobians. We can breathe in space, remember? Sonic Adventure 2 also. You know? Final Rush and Final Chase? Shadow the Hedgehog as well, with Lost Impact and Cosmic Fall-"

"I get it." I replied as many images of each level flashed through my imagination. I knew she would name every single space level I had played, if I didn't stop her. We would've been there for hours.

"Anyway, I'm gonna find what we came here for. You coming?"

"_We?" _I questioned in my head before shaking it. "No, I'm gonna stay here."

"Alright, suit yourself. I'll be back in a bit." I watched as she ran out of the room, like a child running down the stairs on the morning of their birthday. My hand rubbed my temple.

"How can any of this be happening?" I thought out loud. "My own sister… my only blood relative on this planet is a fucking lunatic. I thought she was better than this. I thought I could help her." I checked behind me to see that no one was around and sat down by the window. Small whimpers escaped me as I allowed myself to cry. "This is my fault. If I hadn't gone through that portal then none of this would be happening."

I thought back to when we first got here. The city was like nothing I had ever seen before. I was scared being somewhere I had no clue about, but it was colourful, lively and cheerful. People were just going about their everyday lives. Then _we_ had to drop in. Even when Eggman escaped the first time, people around us cheered just for trying to stop him. We returned to Chaotix after for Vector to say…

"_You should be proud of yourself like I am of you…"_

"Vector…" I whimpered before another wave of sadness came over me.

"_If you ever need anything, you've got us."_

My eyes closed tightly and I buried my face in my hand. My body jumped slightly when two arms wrapped themselves around me.

"Arby, what's wrong?" Her voice sounded genuinely worried, which gave me a little hope that she wasn't all gone yet.

"I miss them, Nocturne! I miss Vector! I miss Charmy! Hell, I even miss Espio!" She pat my shoulder and held me tighter.

"But, wasn't it you who chose to leave?" I sniffed and took several breaths to steady my voice.

"I know and that's why I can't go back. This was my decision and it was to make them happy, but I'm remembering how kind and caring Vector was towards us and… How can you betray them like this?" To my surprise, she didn't look shocked or angry.

"Arb, that bond you have with them is a bond that I don't. It doesn't matter to me how nice they are to us, I have no emotional connection to any of them. What you are feeling now is something I have never felt in my life. Like your family back on Earth, I had no connection to them either, remember? This is exactly the same thing." I began to cry again. Nocturne still comforted me though, which confused me.

"What about me?"

"You're the only 'bond' I have. Probably because I was in your head for sixteen years, but still…" She trailed off and changed the subject. "You don't need them anymore." I sat up from leaning on her shoulder and gave her a shocked look.

"What?"

"Look, I have seen the hell you have been through your entire life. You had no power over any of it, but somehow fate always had a way to make things worse." I stared at her, still teary-eyed as she became very serious. "I have longed for a way to makes things better, especially after… that day." I knew exactly what she was talking about and shuddered violently as I remembered. Nocturne placed one arm back around me and pulled me close before continuing. "With the emeralds, I can make things better and I can ensure that you will never be hurt again."

"H-how?"

"Because I am the only one who can guarantee that you will never be alone. I can promise you without a doubt, that I will never leave your side. No matter how bad one of your episodes got. No matter how real your hallucinations may seem. You could go absolutely crazy, but I would still be there. I can even promise that I won't be killed, because I can't. My ability may work during the day, but I am pretty sure that the emeralds will make me invincible, as if I was Super Sonic." At the mention of his name, I took this opportunity to study her. She certainly wasn't golden with heavenly horns, but the Chaos energy had changed her on a more subtle level.

Her tail was in a larger coil, meaning that it grown in length by a considerable amount. Her horns had also grown longer and now had arrow heads on the end of them. Her eyes were the last thing I noticed; they were heavily bloodshot and the bright green in them literally glowed.

"I can be that support beam that you have always needed, and no car accident will take me from you." I shuddered again. Everything she was saying, it was everything that I desperately wanted to hear. "All you have to do is do the same for me. We can be two sisters against the world. You stay by my side and I will stay by yours."

"I don't know, Nocturne." I couldn't gather a coherent thought. What she was saying was true, I guess. With the emeralds, no one could kill her and I would never be alone like she said. It was a lifeline that I had begged to have for so long. "I couldn't mindlessly hurt all those innocent people."

"Who said they were innocent?" I stayed silent and my confused expression told her that she needed to explain. "Think about it, there are murderers, thieves, rapists and fuck knows what else down there. On top of that, think about the many children that are being bullied. Those bullies will ultimately get away with it and grow up without ever realising that they may have caused someone's death. Think about the victims that can't defend themselves and the teachers that say they will do something, but don't. That victim is you, Arb. Don't allow this to happen anymore." A silence lasted. Nocturne got up and studied me before finally speaking again. "I could go on about everything else you have suffered, but your expression says that you've heard enough." I looked up with a hard glare. Her face remained serious as she asked me one last thing. "The choice is yours, Arby…"

"…Me or them?"


	23. Return

**Hey everyone! Arby here! Apologies on the slight delay, I actually went out today, but crashed as soon as I got home. My sleeping pattern is more than broken. Woops.**

**Anyway, here's a new chapter for you all! I hope you enjoy it! Things are picking up now and I'm looking forward to seeing how you react to some of the things that happen! :)**

**I hope you have all had a good week! Mine has been the usual mostly, but I did finally manage to replace my laptop battery. It's needed it for a while, at least it's done now.**

**I won't ramble and instead, I'll allow you to read before I delay it anymore! XD!**

**See you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The weather had gotten no better as the night went on. Rain bombarded the wooden shack whilst the wind had reached ridiculous speeds. The Chaotix thankfully still had power and were able to keep updated via the news channel. Vector was sat with his feet up at his desk and Charmy was lying on the couch staring sadly at the screen. Espio had stayed in his corner and kept his eyes on the storm outside. None of them had said a word for a while.

"Alright boys…" Vector began. The croc got up and sat on the couch opposite Charmy. Espio had diverted his gaze over to his boss. "…things have been way too quiet around here. I say we talk about this now, before it becomes a problem."

"I have nothing to say." Charmy said depressingly. Vector sent a concerned look his way as did Espio.

"Charms, we couldn't force her to stay if she didn't want to."

"That's the point though, Vec!" The bee jumped up and began to hover in the air. "She did want to stay! The only reason she left was because of him!" Espio held his look of concern, while the bee shot daggers at him.

"What do you want me to do then?" The chameleon asked calmly.

"Go out there and bring her back!" He yelled at his older comrade.

"And if she doesn't want to?"

"She does want to." Charmy had hovered right in front of him with a look of fire in his eyes. Espio took it as a challenge and glared back at him until Vector's sudden shocked expression caught the ninja's attention.

"What is it?" Espio asked. Charmy turned also once he saw the reptilian's change of focus.

"You guys are not gonna believe this." The croc had is eyes firmly glued to the screen as he spoke. The duo assumed that something on the news had worried him and decided to go over to look for themselves.

It was hard to tell at first. The footage was coming from one of the helicopters overhead that was circling Shadow's apartment for reasons none of them knew.

"I don't understand." Espio admitted. "Why are they at Shadow's?"

"Look! The roof!" Charmy said with tears suddenly running down his face. Both the chameleon and crocodile tried to see what the bee was seeing. Their mouths hung in realisation. Upon the roof of Shadow's apartment building, was a black and red chameleon. She had seven glowing gems circling her head. Next to her was a hedgehog, whose fur consisted of black and purple.

"No…" Espio whispered at the sight. The hedgehog then pointed the chopper out to her reptilian friend. She grinned before creating a fireball in her hand and launching it into the observing aircraft. The screen turned to static. "No!" The magenta Chaotix member yelled as the channel cut off. Vector was frozen, he simply couldn't believe it. Charmy continued to cry silently. He felt betrayed. Before they could even get a chance to absorb what was going on, the door was violently kicked open and an angry black hedgehog marched inside.

"Where is she?!" He demanded fiercely. "Where is that psychotic fucker of yours?!" Knowing who he was referring to, Espio decided to take this into his own hands.

"Let me handle the hedgehog." He said to the other two before calmly walking over to Shadow. The hedgehog couldn't react however, when Espio suddenly grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall. The other two Chaotix were utterly flabbergasted by his actions. "I am in no mood for another one of your tantrums." He growled in his face. "Nocturne is not here and neither is Arby. We don't know where they are, understand?" Shadow didn't move as Espio's grip on his windpipe tightened. "Oh, and before you come barging in here again, be sure to knock first." The mammal's eyes widened just enough for Espio to notice. He let him go, but apparently the other two didn't get Espio's hidden plan.

"Wait a sec, Nocturne and Arb are at your place, Shadow. We just saw them on the news." Vector explained, causing Espio to shoot him a terrified glare.

"Yeah, but then Nocturne shot the chopper down." Charmy added.

"What?!" Shadow shouted. "So, the hedgehog is working with her now? Then they'll both pay for what they've done!" Just as he was about to leave, a kunai was placed up against the front of his throat.

"Espio, what the hell are you doing?!" Vector exclaimed in a panic. The chameleon on the other hand, ignored his companion's query and focused on the hedgehog that was at his mercy.

"You shall not lay a finger on her." His voice returned to a low growl right into Shadow's ear.

"Do you have any idea what that chameleon did?" His voice had lowered in volume, but the hatred was still there. They all remained silent and waited for him to continue. "She murdered Rouge." A collective gasp escaped the three of them. Espio lowered his weapon and took a step back. "I am going to kill her for what she's done and that evil fucking sister of hers."

"No." Espio objected sternly.

"Excuse me?" Shadow growled back at him.

"We don't know for sure that Arby is working with her." The ninja explained.

"So, how do you propose we find that out? Just walk up to her and ask?" The Ultimate Lifeform's hint of sarcasm made it clear that he was joking. Espio on the other hand, was in no such mood.

"Exactly." The other three looked at him, each with puzzled expressions.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a sec, Es." Vector got up and stood in front of him, placing a hand upon his shoulder. "You can't go out there. I've never seen a storm this bad before."

"I don't care. I am going out there and finding out myself. Only then can we be sure."

"And what if she's not there?" The croc leader asked.

"Then I will search the entire city until she is found. You are not talking me out of this, Vector." Espio countered, causing the taller reptilian to sigh in defeat and step aside. "You." The chameleon turned his attention back to Shadow. "Don't move until I get back. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal." He said with a glare before going to sit on the couch next to Charmy, who had also sat back down.

"Good, I'll be back soon." Without a second to spare, Espio ran out the door and made his way to 'Shadow's side' of the city.

The hedgehog folded his arms and glanced next to him to see a scared child looking up at him. Out of a sense of guilt, he decided to comfort him, but only a little.

"Sorry you had to see that, kid." Charmy smiled and leaned against his arm.

"It's ok, uncle Shadow."

"_Why does he keep calling me that?"_ Shadow wondered until the bee brought him out of his thoughts.

"I hope Espio will be alright." Shadow's face changed to one of concern as he closed his eyes.

"So do I."

* * *

Reds and oranges kept the skyline alight. Nocturne had blown up only a few buildings, but she had set fire to a lot more. I was going to ask her on the ARK, but it had slipped my mind until now.

"Hey, how come you can use fireballs? Shadow could never do that." She calmed down for a second to explain.

"I have no idea how I figured it out. It was like just seeing the emerald at that particular moment allowed me to use these powers. It's not just fire either; each emerald allows me to use something different."

"I… don't understand." I told her honestly.

"I'll demonstrate." With that, the yellow emerald that steadily orbited her skull lit up brighter than the others. Suddenly, lightning began to strike the surface in rapid succession.

"What the fuck is that?!" I screamed as I dove behind her like some vulnerable puppy.

"That is a real fucking lightning storm, buttercup! WHOOO!" I quivered at her power. She could use the emeralds for different types of abilities. The red allowed her to summon fire. The yellow allowed her to summon lightning.

"W-what about the others?" I could just about manage a sentence after that unexpected wall of light. Nocturne placed a hand on her chin.

"I'm not sure, if I'm honest. I'll test them." This could not possibly end well.

"_Why did I have to ask?"_ I internally scolded myself.

The darker blue emerald lit up first. It was raining already, but in about half a second it became torrential. I couldn't see anything until my sister toned it down.

"I didn't know rain could fall that hard!" Already the streets below had begun to flood, but all the fire and smoke in the distance didn't seem to be affected at all.

The light blue emerald lit up next. Since we had water already, I didn't have a clue what this one would do until eight funnels of wind descended from the clouds.

"Holy shit! Arb! Are you seeing this?!" I could not answer as eight enormous tornados began tearing up the landscape.

"Dammit, Nocturne! Stop it!" I yelled at her over my fear.

"I don't know how!" She admitted.

"What?! Well, figure it out! Please!" The clear emerald then lit up and in just a few seconds, the majority of what Nocturne had caused was suddenly reversed.

"Oh… never mind." She chuckled as if nothing had happened. "Aw man! That put out all my fires!" She complained loudly. "I'm gonna go and relight them. You wanna come?" I shook my head.

"I just… need a breather for a bit."

"Alright, can't blame you after that. I'll be back in a little while." She grinned and vanished from view. Once she had gone, my façade faded and I screamed my thoughts aloud.

"Dammit!" I yelled to the burning sky. "Why can I not do anything right?! How come I can't just talk to her?! I just shut up and cower! It's all I can do! I'm so fucking useless!" Tears swelled in my eyes as I looked up to the smoke-stained atmosphere. "She sees the world as a toy to play with. Those that live within it are nothing more than little plastic soldiers." My eyelids closed quickly as new droplets of sorrow ran down my fur. "I can't let her continue, but she's my sister. I can't just betray her. What do I do? How can I stop her?"

"With help." A voice spoke from behind me. I instantly turned and my bones began to tremble with fear rather than cold. It was unclear as to who it was at first, until another flash of lightning brought out his flawless, golden eyes.

"L-l-listen, I-I swear this isn't what you think!" I panicked and backed up until the heel of my foot felt nothing underneath it. My terrified eyes glanced back to see that another step would send me to my much-deserved grave.

"It's alright." He spoke softly enough to give me reassurance.

"W-w-what is?" I stuttered, not realising that he had been there a lot longer than I had thought. He stepped out from the shadows and approached me. It wasn't until he was stood next to me that he finally answered.

"I knew you weren't really with her." His voice remained calm and even relieved. He placed a hand on my head and I felt a sudden sting. "Your wound is bleeding again." I had completely forgotten that I had a head injury at all. I felt something trickling down the side of my face earlier, but I had assumed that it was just the rain. "The others though, they weren't so sure."

"W-what?! Charmy and Vector?! They think that I'm-"

"Not anymore. I have proof now." His eyes remained on me, but I couldn't look back at him out of shame.

"B-but… I helped her bring down a military chopper! I'm no innocent!" He shot me an odd look before realising.

"You mean that helicopter you pointed out to her?" He asked.

"Yeah! Wait… how do you know about that?" My voice temporarily calmed enough to ask.

"Because that was just a news chopper, broadcasting you and your sister to the remainder of the city that had power. We watched the entire thing." The calmness then fled.

"WHAT?! Shit! I only pointed it out to her because I thought I was gonna be shot! Oh crap! I probably killed like five people who were only doing their job! Plus, half the city probably thinks I'm evil too! They're gonna hunt me down and-" My words were cut off when the chameleon put both his hands on my shoulders and tried to shake me out of my hysterical state.

"Take it easy! There is still time to change this." He spoke sternly.

"How, Es?" My voice was suddenly full of hopelessness. "I don't have any special abilities like you guys have. I'd only end up making things worse."

"Enough." I finally looked at him to see a face of concern. "You have got to stop this."

"Stop what?"

"Seeing yourself in such a negative light. I do not understand how you are so blinded. The second day you were here, what did you do?" I took a minute to try and remember back. It wasn't that long ago, but so much had happened that it was difficult. It soon came to me nonetheless.

"I… tried to stop Eggman?" I questioned in case I was wrong, but Espio nodded to tell me that I was right.

"Correct. When Nocturne was captured, what was the first thing you wanted to do?"

"Panic?"

"No, you wanted to rescue her, but granted that was before you knew of his true nature. Whilst on his fleet and after I… left you, you managed to get back to the Tornado without the help of any of us."

"Well…"

"Okay, apart from that one robot." He admitted. "Now that your sister has shown her true colours, you are still trying to see the good in her."

"So what?" I argued. "It's not like that's making a difference. She's out there right now setting fire to anything she can find."

"That's not the point. The point is that you are so brave and so strong and so determined when you need to be. You're trying so hard to see a better side in Nocturne that, I'm sorry to say this, just isn't there. You're trying to talk her out of it instead of just out right attacking her." I watched him as he said these unfamiliar words to me. The look in his eyes told me that he meant them, but why?

"Es… why are you saying all this? I don't deserve to be praised for what's going on. Nocturne is bringing the city to its knees because of me! I can only assume that the rest of Mobius will follow! You hate me, remember?! You hate me because I'm a-"

"But you're not!" He yelled back, effectively silencing me where I stood.

"What?" I found myself saying that word a lot recently and I thought that I had been lost for words enough times already. He took a good look at the disturbed skyline in the distance before looking back at me.

"You're not human." It was hard to tell, but a small grin slowly appeared. "You are very much Mobian." To anyone else, that would've been an average statement, but to me, no words meant more. I smiled warmly back at him, again lost for something to say. As if knowing that my English had 'ran away from me', Espio spoke again. "You don't have to face this alone." I looked at him with worry, as if silently asking 'I don't?' "Come home, Arby. Come home with me." I was so close to just hugging him and returning to Chaotix, but then I remembered that this wasn't some movie where things just turn out the way I wanted them to. I really didn't want to say this, but I had to.

"I can't, Es." His shocked expression hurt me the most.

"W-why not?" I think that's the first time I've heard him stutter; cute.

"Nocturne is coming back here and when she does, she's going to be expecting me. When she figures out that I've gone back to you guys, not only will she hunt me, but she will hunt you as well. There is no way on this planet that I am just going to allow you to get hurt because of me." I tried to look as serious as possible, but my sadness was breaking through again.

"But Arb-" He was cut off when explosions started going off from around the edge of the city. We both stared in awe as a wall of fire arose from them and into the clouds, cutting off the city from the rest of the world.

"You have to go!" I ordered. He stared at me with a terrified expression. Wait, what? Terrified? Espio? That couldn't be…

"I am not just going to leave you! Not again!" He shouted back, but my mind was made up.

"It's different this time." I placed my hands on his shoulders and focused my eyes into his. "This time you don't have a choice." His head slowly shook, but he couldn't talk. "Tell the others that she has all seven Chaos Emeralds and that she can use them to summon all sorts of elemental powers! Will you do that for me?!" Espio stayed silent; my god I wanted so badly just to hug him. "Espio!" He snapped out of his trance.

"Yes! Yes… of course." His voice was vastly different, almost hurt. "What about you?"

"Nocturne won't hurt me as long as she doesn't find out about this. I'll get information on her and continue to try to talk her out of it. I just don't know if it will do much good." I admitted, knowing it was a long shot. Another explosion, closer this time signalled that our time was up. "Get going! I'll be fine!" He began to walk backwards, but said one last thing before disappearing back into the darkness.

"I _am_ coming back for you." With that said, he turned invisible and headed home.


	24. For All, the Game is on!

**Hello everyone! Here is another chapter for you and it's a fun one! I say fun, but... well, you'll see. ;)**

**I look forward to seeing how you react to it. That's part of the reason why I write at all. Your reactions, your enjoyment and simply because I love to write. :) With that, I thank you all for reading, reviewing and sticking with it so far. There's plenty more to come!**

**I'll see you again next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

How had the city gotten this bad in such a short space of time? This, along with many other questions filled the ninja's head as he tried to catch his breath. He was stood right outside the Chaotix HQ and had been for a few minutes. He didn't want to go inside until he could compose himself. Water ran endlessly down his face, but not all of it was rain. His hand was pressed up against the wall as he stared at the drowning blades of grass beneath his feet. Espio shook his head and breathed heavily before finally getting himself together enough to go inside.

Charmy had been asleep on the hedgehog next to him since the ninja was out, but the explosions woke the bee up in a fright. He was now holding onto Shadow's arm. The hedgehog wore a blank expression as he noticed the door open. Vector was back at his desk and gave a huge sigh of relief when he saw Espio walk back in. The relief was short lived however, when he noticed that Arby wasn't there with him.

"Where is she, Es?" The croc asked quietly. The atmosphere was vastly different from what it was outside. It was quiet and deceptively peaceful, whilst the city was nothing short of hell. Espio forced the door closed against the wind before explaining what happened. Shadow and Charmy both stared at him, each noticing the look of worry and anger. He stayed stood by the door as he spoke, mindlessly staring at the wall.

"I found her, but she wouldn't come back." Charmy and Vector gasped whilst Shadow hadn't moved. "She's not working with Nocturne, but she wouldn't come with me out of fear that Nocturne would find us and hurt us."

"Oh man…" Vector whispered whilst shaking his head.

"B-but…" Charmy tried to speak, but couldn't find the words.

"Assuming what you say is true…" Shadow began. "…that was quite a noble move." Espio nodded, but was still worried nonetheless. "Did she tell you anything else?" The black mammal's voice had softened slightly. He didn't want to make things for him any worse, Chaos knows he's done enough.

"Nocturne has all the Chaos Emeralds and she can use each of them to summon elemental powers."

"So, that enormous lightning strike we saw while you were gone, was that her?" Vector asked.

"I'd assume so." Espio replied. "Arby is still trying to talk her out of her actions. We are all a game to Nocturne and she will not stop until she has had her fun with us."

"That crazy hedgehog is on a suicide mission!" Shadow stood from his seat. "Once Nocturne has her mind set on doing something, she _will_ do it. Those Chaos powers will only drive her mad, since she hasn't got the faintest idea of how to control them. After that, Arby is as good as dead!"

"So, what do you suggest?" The green reptile asked, seeing that Espio had gone visibly pale.

"We go after her now. She cannot keep up with me. If I distract her, then you three can work together to at least get one emerald out of her grasp. From there, I can use my powers to slow time, take the other emeralds, and send that bitch to oblivion." They all looked at each other and nodded. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

"Hey! They're both heading towards the city square!" Charmy yelled as he pointed to the news that had a different chopper keeping an eye on them.

"Then that is our destination. Let's move." Shadow told the trio before they all swiftly left.

* * *

We ran as fast as our legs could carry us. Hundreds of enraged civilians, human and Mobian alike, chased after us relentlessly.

"Isn't this exhilarating?!" Nocturne shouted back at me. "I don't think I've ever had this much fun in my life!"

"_Speak for yourself!"_ I had never been so scared. If I stopped now, then the crowd behind us would surely tear me apart. I couldn't let it get to me, at least not yet. I could see the road opening out into a square with a small field of grass in the centre and a couple of benches. Once in the middle, Nocturne stopped.

"What's going on?" I asked, but she said nothing. A wall of fire suddenly spawned behind us to stop the crowd from reaching us. Nocturne nodded her head forward. I followed her gaze to see Shadow stood there.

"_Oh shit!"_ I inwardly began to panic, but Nocturne just laughed at the entire situation.

"I knew we'd meet again at some point. Miss me, did ya?" The hedgehog looked anything but pleased.

"Did you seriously think that you could just kill and get away with it?" Shadow smirked. What the hell was he planning?

"Yeah." She said bluntly with a psychotic grin. Nothing else was said and Shadow began to skate towards her. I ran to the side to avoid whatever he was going to do. I looked back to see that Nocturne wasn't running. She wasn't moving at all. I slowed to a halt and watched the events unfold.

Shadow was rapidly approaching without a moment of hesitation. I then noticed the yellow emerald lighting up.

"Shadow! No!" I yelled to try and stop him, but by that point it was too late. A blinding flash of light lasted for a split-second and I swear I briefly felt a sudden rush of heat. My eyes opened to see Shadow on the ground. His body twitched uncontrollably and wouldn't allow him to get back up. If that was anyone else, then they would have been dead. I guess that's one of the reasons why he's the Ultimate Lifeform. He must have been in tremendous pain as Nocturne approached and placed her foot on the side of his head.

"What was that about getting away with it?" A ball of pure electrical energy then began to appear in her hand. She was going to kill him right there and then! I couldn't watch as she towered over him, until I heard an annoyed yell. I looked back to see that she was trying to reach for her back, as if trying to get something off, but I couldn't see anything. Wait…

"You idiot!" I shouted with fear. The angered chameleon changed the ball of energy into one of fire. She launched it into the ground behind her causing the culprit to let go because of the blast, and materialise on the ground. Her grin widened as Espio looked up at her.

"You obviously have a death wish." She spoke in an almost teasing manner. Another fireball appeared in her hand. She took a step closer.

"NO!" I screamed before running in front of her. She looked shocked to begin with and even got rid of the flames in her hand.

"What is this?" She asked with very little emotion to her voice.

"You are not hurting him!" I yelled at her.

"Arby, what are you doing?!" Espio whispered angrily.

"Get out of here!" I whispered in return with a glance.

"Look at you, risking your life for the piece of shit lying behind you." Nocturne spat.

"Do not call him that." I growled. Vector and Charmy were stood nearby, waiting anxiously for Nocturne's next move. They thought it was best not to approach, since one lightning strike could potentially end it all.

"I should have known better. You never had it in you to hurt others, no matter how much they hurt you." Her voice came with more venom after each word she spoke. She hated me and she was going to make sure the whole damn world knew that. "Still, it disgusts me that my own flesh and blood would turn on me. You will not get off lightly for this."

"I don't give a shit about what you do to me, but you are not hurting them."

"Brave words, but they will not be so fond of you if they learn where I came from." I froze, petrified.

"W-w-what…" I quivered in place.

"Allow me to tell you pathetic mortals the story of how I came to be. Perhaps then you will see who the _real_ villain is." I could barely breathe. I knew exactly what she was going to tell them. I had to think of something.

"How do we know you're telling the truth?" Espio asked as he glared up at her.

"Because, my dear sister will back me up. You were always the honest one."

"_I knew that would come back and bite me in the ass!"_ I thought with annoyance towards myself. I turned to Espio and helped him up as Nocturne began. Shadow had also regained control of himself, with the odd twitch here and there.

"I never used to be a physical being. I was nothing, but words trapped inside the head of another. Whenever I acted up, my so-called 'master' would punish me and trap me further until I begged for forgiveness. This cycle went on for 16 years, until one fateful day when we went for a walk and found a portal. I begged for her to not enter it, but she did not heed my warning. It was through this portal that I somehow managed to separate and gain the body that I use now. It was thanks to that mind that I was set free and able to reign over you for the rest of your pointless lives. Whose mind am I talking about?" She paused and stared evilly down at me. "Hers."

She had gotten rid of the fire walls and the crowd had slowly approached as they listened. Each and every one of them was now silent… and looking hatefully at me. I could only look at the ground; shame quickly overcoming me.

"Arby…" I heard a voice say. He was disappointed in me and it hurt so much. "Please… please tell me this isn't true." Everyone had their eyes on me, waiting for an answer. My bottom lip quivered as I looked up into his amber eyes.

"It's true." I told him. He, as well as the majority of others, let out an astonished gasp.

"You cannot hope to harm me with the powers I possess, even with the most advanced of weapons. But, if you seek revenge so badly for the loved ones I have killed and the homes I have destroyed, then you can harm my origin." I stared up at her with an uprising panic. An enraged voice cut through the crowd. I turned and backed up a few steps as Shadow stormed out from the civilians.

"You bitch! It's because of you that Rouge is dead! It's because of you that this city has gone to shit! It's because of you that any of this is happening at all!" What could I say? He was right after all.

"What are you doing?!" Espio growled fiercely at him, earning a great deal of surprise from me.

"So many lives have been lost because of Nocturne and ultimately, because of her!" The hedgehog ignored the chameleon's protests and turned to the furious crowd behind him. "We have all been trampled into the ground and our way of life effectively torn apart! Why are we all standing here while this demon still lives?!" Everyone began yelling and shouting. Shadow was rallying them! I had no idea what to do until I saw Espio, who looked just as terrified as I did.

"Run." He mouthed to me.

"What?" I said with nothing but fear in my words.

"You don't have a choice." He whispered.

"B-but-"

"Get her!" The crowd chanted.

"Run! Now!" Upon Espio's command, I turned and sprinted as fast as I possibly could with the same hundreds of people chasing after me. This was it. There was no way I could outrun them.

"_I'm so sorry."_

The remaining trio watched as the hundreds of civilians ran in the hedgehog's direction. Nocturne must have teleported out long ago since she was nowhere to be seen.

Espio stared with tears running down his face. He watched as both humans and Mobians worked for the same horrific goal.

"_We're… no better."_ He thought before a wave of anger rushed through him. "Dammit!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.

"V-V-Vector…" A young bee whimpered.

"It's alright, Charms." The croc tried his best to reassure him, but Espio's outburst wasn't helping. "I just have to calm Espio, okay? Stay right here." The bee nodded before the Chaotix leader stormed up to the chameleon and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Espio! Espio! For Chaos sake, calm down!"

"Damn it all, Vector! I am such a hypocrite!" He yelled at him.

"What're you talking about?!"

"Did you not see?! That crowd hunting her down like a pack of wolves! Not just humans, Vector! Mobians as well!"

"Now do you see?" The croc asked calmly, hoping to calm the chameleon as well.

"We're no better, Vector! I am such a disgrace! If they catch her, then she's dead!" Espio was about to run after them, but the croc's grip on him kept him in his place.

"No, Espio! Going to find her now will only put her in more danger! She's smart, Es, and can be resourceful when she needs to be. She'll be alright, but for Chaos sake you need to have faith in her. Can you do that?" Espio stopped struggling and looked up at Vector with a deadly serious expression.

"Of course I can."

"Good. We need to get home, in case Nocturne comes back. We're not safe out here anymore." The chameleon nodded in agreement. Vector picked up Charmy in his arms and followed Espio back to the Chaotix where they thought up a plan of action.

* * *

_Three Days Later…_

* * *

The ninja emerged from his room with everything he was going to need. Shuriken and kunai were carefully hidden in his wrists and ankles with the addition of a long sword on his back and a black, Velcro watch on his wrist. He made his way downstairs and towards Vector who handed him a bottle of water. Espio took several gulps of it before putting the lid back on and returning it to the larger reptile.

"You gonna be alright out there, Es?"

"I'll be fine. There is still plenty of the city I haven't searched yet. She has to be out there somewhere. Have you heard anything?" Espio asked in return.

"Nothing, pal. I don't think anyone's found her yet, which is good." The croc told him. "However, Nocturne has heavily damaged one of the skyscrapers closer to the city centre. Be careful, in case it comes down."

"What about the Wolf Packs?" The ninja questioned.

"Nothing new there." Charmy spoke, who was sat on the couch with a candle and a walkie-talkie on the table in front of him. "They're still wandering arou- Oh wait!"

"What?" Espio said with sudden concern in his voice.

"I just remembered! Apparently, several Packs have raided one of G.U.N.'s armouries. They've got guns now." The three of them each had a very uncertain look.

"Look, Es…" Vector began, but Espio cut him off.

"I'm still going. I'll just have to be a bit more careful than usual."

"Alright, you know where we'll be. Get back before dawn-well… you know what I mean, alright?" Vector reminded him.

"Understood. Keep all the lights off and let no one in. I can enter through my bedroom window." The other two nodded. "See you soon." He finished before heading back up to his room to climb out the window.

This had been the routine for the past three nights now. Once the clocks were at a late enough time, Espio would slip out of the Chaotix HQ and search every inch of the city he could before returning. The people of the city had since split into many different groups and factions, each of them only out for themselves. The chameleon understood the importance of survival; he just didn't understand the need to be at war with each other in order to do so.

Regardless, ever since he compared them to 'a pack of wolves', they have called all of these groups Wolf Packs. These Packs would also roam the quietened city streets, both during the day and at night, which meant Espio had to be very wary. They were ruthless and didn't take kindly to strangers, no matter who they were.

The remaining Freedom Fighters had 'disappeared' according to rumour. Espio knew this wasn't true. The majority of them were simply in hiding, for fear of being murdered if a Wolf Pack were to find them. Cream had told Charmy that they would be safe in Tails' house because of his advanced technology and defences, but the bee chose not to go. Cream still kept him updated on the outside situation by one of Tails' advanced receivers. This in turn, allowed the entire Chaotix to be informed on the city's situation, which meant they could be slightly safer when travelling around.

"_Brave kid."_ He thought before disappearing into the maze of buildings.


	25. Long, Lost Spirit

**Hello everyone! It's that time again! Here is a new chapter for you all! This one has some personal value to me, which I will explain at the end, so I hope you all like it.**

**It's been just a typical week, not that that's a bad thing. I have been playing a lot of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky though. That game is an absolute gem. No other game has made me cry as much as that one has. I'll probably go and listen to the music from it once I've finished up here.**

**Anyway, I shall let you read. See you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

Espio's mission was simple; find Arby. Vector had also told him to scavenge for supplies, which he did of course, but he kept his priority the same.

The chameleon had to be incredibly careful when navigating the city. The rooftops usually had Wolf guards, and likely snipers as well based on what Charmy had told him, so he couldn't use those. The streets were also dangerous as various Wolves would charge around them in whatever vehicle they could steal and get running. Remain on the ground and you were likely going to be roadkill. Espio had to keep both his eyes and ears open and choose the right moments to climb a wall to avoid hostiles.

Tonight, he was travelling to a particular corner of the city he hadn't been to yet. He had been holding off coming here on purpose, but he couldn't anymore. This was the district where Shadow's apartment block was located. The chances of the ebony hedgehog being there were slim, but it was the association that made his stomach tighten. He kept invisible for the entire journey and only ran into two Wolf Packs, who were on their nightly scouting runs; much better than the previous night when he nearly became a butchered pig.

He climbed the side of the building until he was near the roof. His eyes peered over the wall to see that it was all clear. Espio approached a trap door, which had a ladder that descended into a small room just off the hallway, right next to the elevator. The chameleon questioned the odd layout for a brief moment. He had never noticed this ladder before. Nonetheless, he moved on and into Shadow's apartment.

Just before opening the door, a strong and unpleasant stench caught his attention.

"_Oh Chaos no…"_ He thought when he realised what it could potentially be. With a deep breath, Espio opened the door and nearly threw up. It was completely dark as this part of the city had lost power long before now, but the smell was so strong, it was unmistakable; Rouge was still here. The ninja didn't move until his eyes had adjusted, so that he could see the silhouettes of furniture around him. Each foot was placed carefully, the last thing he needed was something on his shoe.

He first went into Shadow's room to see if there was anything that could be of use to him. Espio knew that he kept a firearm hidden in there somewhere. Yes, he was looking for it, but not for himself. The ninja was more than capable of defending himself without the assistance of a gun, but he wanted to make sure that any scavenging Wolf Packs couldn't get a hold of it. Unfortunately for him, one Pack had also chosen tonight to search this particular block. Espio could hear the group leader barking orders at the rest of them.

A loud bang told Espio that they had kicked down the door and were now inside. He quickly became invisible and climbed onto the ceiling. The leader ordered one of them to search the rooms at the back. A Mobian snake then came into the room the chameleon was currently hiding in. Espio inwardly began to panic. Snakes were one of the few species that could see him whether he was invisible or not, since snakes naturally had thermal vision; all he had to do was look up. He searched the entire room thoroughly; tipping out drawers with his tail, going under the bed and even making his way behind the bookshelves.

"Anything in there, Zeus?!" The same member yelled from a different room.

"There's a chest hidden behind this bookshelf! I can't get it open!" The other one entered as the snake dragged the chest out using his tail. It was a basic wooden chest that had a heavy padlock on it. Zeus would never be able to get it open due to the lack of limbs. They surrounded the chest and tried to figure out how to get it open without damaging whatever it may hold.

"There could be anything in there." The Mobian chameleon pointed out. This one was vastly different from any of the Shinobi that Espio was used to. This chameleon had no horns and wore many shades of green upon his scales. His only attire, apart from the white gloves, was a pair of red boots.

"It certainly isn't food." Zeus informed him. "I would have been able to smell it."

"No one would keep food hidden away like this, especially with the heat wave we were having before all of this." The chameleon replied. "Maybe it was the murder weapon?"

"I doubt it, Sage. She smelt charred; I think she was burned alive."

"You could smell that? How did you get past the fleshy part?" Sage questioned with disgust.

"You seem to forget what kind of reptile I am. Anyway, we need to get this open." Zeus replied, getting back to the subject at hand.

"I'll look through the kitchen." Sage announced before leaving the room. Espio assumed that there were three or four in this group, but it seemed he was mistaken. Perhaps it was just a small scouting party? Or maybe these two were on their own? Either way, he couldn't allow himself to be spotted, in case they weren't as friendly as they seemed. "Oh, that was easy." Sage said as he walked back in with a key.

"Where the hell did you find that?" Zeus questioned.

"It was just sitting on a table in the other bedroom." Sage told him. The green chameleon approached the chest and knelt down, placing the key in the padlock and successfully unlocking it. He then lifted the lid and Zeus dug his head inside. "Careful." Sage warned.

"Whoa!" The snake exclaimed before removing himself so that his friend could look. Sage was equally stunned at what they had found. One at a time, he pulled out a small book, one kunai and a shuriken star tied to a bit of string.

"Is this a necklace or something?" The lizard asked rhetorically.

"Pretty dangerous, don't you think?" Espio could not believe what he was seeing. Had Shadow perhaps kept it?

"_No…"_ The ninja thought as a mix of anger and sadness came over him. _"Why would he?"_

"Not really. Shurikens are only used for distractions; it won't do us any good against firearms." He put it back, along with the kunai before flicking through the book.

"Well, Sage? What does it say?"

"Nothing interesting; just some stuff about this 'Espio' guy." Sage concluded. "Again, it won't do us any good."

"Then let's get going. Jak and Dové may have found something across the hall." They both nodded before swiftly leaving the area, allowing Espio to breathe.

Once he was sure it was clear, the chameleon climbed down and looked through the chest. He put the kunai with the others and anxiously placed the Shuriken around his neck. His eyes watched it dangle before he too looked through the book. It was more of a notepad if anything, but it clearly had information about him.

The first page said 'In case you forget again.' Espio began to silently read. They clearly hadn't flicked through the pages very well since many of them were about Maria and the ARK. It wasn't until somewhere in the middle that he was mentioned.

'_How do they work so well? Vector clearly gets some high off of being their leader and Charmy doesn't know what he's doing half the time. It's Espio that has me curious. How does he put up with them?_

_Vector was ordering him to hurry up at the terminal, while Charmy insisted that he could do a better job at hacking before I came in and unintentionally solved both of their problems. I had no idea that they would be there. My goal was to find the emeralds and nothing more, until Espio followed me into the data stream and requested my help._

_I must admit that this guy, out of everyone, gets on my nerves the least. He and I have some similar personality traits, I'm even willing to go as far as to say that I could get on with him, but that is only if I knew him better. He doesn't talk much, neither do I, which brings me back to my first point. How does he put up with the other two? He must have infinite patience. I would have, at the very least, yelled at one of them within ten minutes._

_I wonder how he ended up with them. Probably some unfortunate circumstances if his luck is anything like mine. Maybe talking to him wouldn't be so bad? Just this once? _

_Fine, but only if I run into him again. I am not going to intentionally look for him. That's just pathetic."_

Images flashed through his head of their first meeting. Shadow had indeed 'ran into him', literally. He was merely taking a stroll and appreciating the pleasant weather until a black bullet sent him flying into a nearby tree, only to collide with several large branches before landing face first onto the grass below. After a few awkward apologies and several months, they became very close friends, but Shadow couldn't let anyone know about that.

*Click!*

"Who the fuck are you?" A voice growled from behind him. How had he not noticed the footsteps?! This was the second night in a row now that he had been discovered!

"I could say the same in return."

"Don't fuck with me!" The voice yelled as he dug the pistol further into the back of his head.

"Dové!" Another unfamiliar voice shouted at him. "For crying out loud, this guy is clearly on his own and judging by his weapons, he has no guns."

"I do not mean any harm. I was merely looking for supplies." Espio added.

"Us too." The voice continued. "Put it down, Dové." The voice said sternly and he obeyed, allowing Espio to turn around and get a look at these newcomers.

"My name's Jak. This is Dové. My apologies on his behaviour. I'm sure you can understand with the current circumstances." The Mobian Husky explained. Espio nodded. Dové looked a lot like a wolf, which was ironic considering what he nicknamed these kinds of groups. Despite his shaggy, black fur, his short hair was clearly white. He wore a leather jacket and military-style boots. Jak had a checkered blue jacket with white sneakers.

"It's fine, I understand." Espio confirmed with a nod.

"He's just a bit on edge, his daughter is unwell. You wouldn't happen to have any medicine, would you?" Jak asked kindly, but the chameleon sadly shook his head.

"Dammit!" Dové yelled as he slammed his fist into the wall. The Husky ignored the outburst and continued to talk.

"So, I can only assume by the Shuriken star around your neck that my friend found, that this place is yours?"

"No, an old friend of mine used to live here. I'm Espio, by the way." Jak smiled before turning to see Sage and Zeus walk in.

"Who's this guy?" The snake asked. They all introduced themselves and Espio pretended to have no idea who they were to avoid any more arguments. Espio explained how he needed food, while Dové explained that his daughter, Angel, had fallen ill and needed treatment. The wolf had calmed down now and appeared to be just as friendly as the other three.

"So, we're all in the same boat. How about we work together? Just for tonight anyway." The others agreed with Dové's suggestion and they all began to search the remaining apartments of the block.

"I hate to bring this up, but did you know whose body that was back there?" Zeus asked with some hesitation.

"Her name was Rouge. I wasn't close to her, but I knew her." Espio told them.

"My condolences." Jak said. "That must not have been pretty." The purple reptile didn't say anymore on the topic and the others didn't either. Unlike the majority of Wolf Packs, this group were just a band of friends and family trying to survive, just like the Chaotix. They had no interest in firepower, except as a means of defence and nothing more.

"So, what's the book about?" Zeus asked again. It was clear that the snake was the most curious of the bunch, not that Espio minded. If only the book's owner didn't bring him so much anger.

"Just some… past events. I'd rather not talk about it." The others seemed to understand, but some yelling outside caught their attention.

"Great, just when we thought the night could be peaceful." Dové complained.

"You should've known better." Jak commented. "We need to hide somewhere."

"The apartments would be too dangerous. I expect they'll search each one just like we have. The roof is my suggestion." Espio spoke.

"What if they go to the roof as well?" Sage pointed out.

"Then at least we can ambush them. They'll have to climb the ladder first, that puts us at an advantage." They all moved swiftly to the roof and hid in the shadows patiently. Each of them secretly hoped that they wouldn't come up here, but each of them was ready, in case they did.

A series of gunshots startled all five of them. They rushed to the edge of the roof and looked to the street below. A heavily built Mobian lion had some sort of machine gun in his hands. In front of him, was a lifeless body that now had a pool of blood flowing out onto the road.

"Holy crap!" Dové growled.

"Now what?" Sage asked.

"We get the fuck out of here, perhaps?" Zeus answered.

"We're on a roof, Zeus! How do you suggest we do that?!" Sage hissed back at him.

"Enough!" Espio stepped in and offered an idea. "I can distract them by going invisible. You can use my diversion to sneak out of here."

"Espio, that's crazy." Jak voiced his concern. "You'd be putting yourself in a lot of danger for four guys you barely know."

"I am aware of that, but you guys don't deserve a death by bullets and Dové needs to return to his daughter alive." The white-haired wolf was stunned by the gesture and placed a hand on the chameleon's shoulder.

"You don't know what that means to me, Espio. Even after I put a gun to your head. I don't know what to say."

"It's not done yet." Espio told him. The ninja then faced the group and explained the situation. "They are currently on the bottom floor. If you guys hide in one of the apartments on the floor above, I can make a lot of noise on the top floor. They should come upstairs to see what's going on, allowing you guys to head down and back into the streets."

"What are you going to do after?" Zeus questioned.

"I can get to the roof and climb down the wall. No need to worry." They gave each other a concerned look, but decided that it was better than nothing. They had to take this chance if they were to return home. They all said their goodbyes and good lucks before they carefully went downstairs. Espio went with them, in case there was any trouble. Thankfully, the corridors were clear and the four of them hid in the apartment closest to the stairs.

Once ready, Espio made his way back to the top floor and back into Shadow's apartment. He needed some way of making a lot of noise without hurting himself, so breaking a window was out of the question. His golden eyes then noticed the huge, double doored fridge. It would certainly attract some attention if something pushed it over. With that thought, Espio pulled the fridge out slightly so that he could climb in behind it. It took a lot just to move it a few inches due to its weight. The job became a lot easier when he had his entire body pushing against it. The fridge, while still a bit stubborn, finally gave way and crashed loudly upon the kitchen tiles.

"What the fuck was that?!"

"It came from upstairs!"

"Which floor?!"

"I don't know! The top one, I guess?!"

"Well, get up there! Now!"

Multiple footsteps came charging towards Espio's position. The chameleon stared out of the window and saw the group of four exiting the building and sprinting, or slithering, down the street and out of sight. The ninja smiled briefly before turning invisible and attempting to head out the door. As he opened it, one of the Wolf members ran into him and knocked him to the ground with a hard thud.

"What was that?" The Mobian tiger asked in a gruff voice. He stepped forward, but his foot seemed to land on something that wasn't even there. He wore a long, black trench coat with black boots to match. One of his eyes glowed red, indicating that it was cybernetic and thus, had thermal vision. The eye travelled down until it landed on the chameleon, who couldn't move because the tiger's foot had him pinned by the chest. The tiger grinned, revealing his long and sharp canines. An idea came to the ninja's mind; he didn't like it, but it was necessary for his survival.

Espio placed a hand on the tiger's ankle, as if trying to push it off. Suddenly, he used his other hand to pull out a kunai and brutally dig it into the calf muscle. It was harsh, but effective and the tiger dropped instantly, allowing Espio to retrieve the kunai and roll onto his front to get up.

"We've got a live one up here!" The tiger yelled as Espio ran out the door, heading for the roof. As he was climbing the ladder, he glanced down to see two more Wolf members chasing after him; a Mobian cougar and a Mobian panther. This group was obviously made up of big cats, which he knew were both strong and aggressive.

As soon as he got to the top, the once gentle rain became a monsoon and began hitting the city hard. Visibility was cut dramatically and Espio's easy escape was about to become a lot more dangerous. Climbing down walls was one thing, but climbing down them when they were this wet was something else. Espio had to ignore the risks for now as he leapt over the roof's edge and tried to cling to the wall.

No such luck.

Both his hands slipped and he couldn't recover. Espio fell like a brick to the concrete path below. A disturbing crack came as he landed on his left arm. The chameleon cried out in pain, alerting everyone inside.

"Dammit! Not now!" He urged himself to get up and fight through the pain. Espio had to get out of sight before the other's got out onto the street. The ninja used the wall to help himself up and without a second thought, ran as fast as he could down the street.

Once around the corner, he went invisible and peered his head back round to see if it was clear. A Mobian cheetah was stood in the road looking around, but eventually went back inside when nothing out of the ordinary was seen. Espio leaned his head back and gave an enormous sigh of relief.

"_No more."_ He thought as more pain shot through him. With his injured arm being supported by the other, Espio walked through the rainstorm back to the Chaotix.

* * *

**Jak, Sage and Dové were some old friends of mine. We have drifted apart over time, but for a reason which I will get to.**

**I have three pets: a fish, chameleon and snake named Jak, Sage and Zeus respectively.**

**The third and final thing is that Jak was my closest and dearest friend. He passed away nearly 3 years ago. His favourite animal was the Husky. I've been wanting to bring Jak into one of my stories for a while, but never found anything that worked. It may be only small, but I think he would've liked it.**

**R.I.P. Jak xx**


	26. Blood upon Gold

**Hello everyone! It's Saturday again and oh boy is this chapter a fun one!**

**I have been looking forward to this chapter for a while. Why? This one, as well as every chapter that follows after, are the reason that this story took so long to get updated again. Every chapter from now on was written and re-written four and a bit times. I put a lot of work into them and I am really looking forward to seeing how you react to the events that occur. I simply couldn't settle on an ending for a long time, until the current one I have, but that won't be for a while yet. In the mean time, enjoy this chapter because I had so much fun writing it, even if it was multiple times!**

**See you next week for more madness!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

Darkness, wind, thunder and lightning; all these things had not stopped and will not stop with the occasional rainstorm. Daylight was non-existent and a normal life was but a dream. The city was a ghost of its former self; it was merely a Wolf battle ground now.

Three months had passed. Very little had changed since Nocturne's reign had begun. Wolf Packs still roamed the open streets and the Chaotix were still a team of three. Shadow had not been seen either; a thought which Espio touched upon every now and then with a dash of hatred.

Tonight was like the many nights before it. Espio had spent the day sleeping and was now ready to head out into hell. His arm, which he had broken in two places, was recovering well despite the situation with the only reminder being a jolt of pain, which these days was becoming rarer. Charmy explained the situation to Vanilla over the walkie talkie and she managed to make it over along with Sonic and Knuckles. She did what she could, but recommended that he rest until he recovered.

Vector reinforced the rabbit's advice until he was well enough to defend himself again. The croc had insisted that he could go out and look for supplies, but during the second night of Vector's absence, the Chaotix HQ was attacked by a Wolf Pack. Charmy had hidden under Espio's bed as the chameleon stayed invisible. They stole everything they could find; food, bandages, money, despite it meaning nothing and even the majority of Espio's weapons. The ninja had to watch as they took his most prized possessions, as attacking them with a broken arm would have been suicide.

After that night, Vector never left the house again. He and the croc decided that Charmy would come first, so what little they had would go to him before the other two. They have been far more efficient with the supplies that Espio could gather since then, which in a way made the experience a blessing.

A huge weight was still on the magenta ninja's mind, and he was going to face it again tonight.

"You all set, buddy?" The croc asked with a smile. Charmy was sat next to him on his desk with a candle nearby.

"As good as I can be." Espio replied.

"Tonight could be the night!" Charmy sang with hope. "You could find her!"

"Charmy's right. The Wolf Packs aren't anywhere near as focused on her now as they used to be. They're usually distracted with guns and rings." Vector told him.

"Wish me luck then. I'll see you in the morning." The chameleon finished.

"Alright pal! Be careful!" The two waved farewell as Espio left the Chaotix once again.

* * *

They gave their words of encouragement every night before he left, but there was a sad truth that only Espio knew. He had no idea if the duo believed their own words. Perhaps they were dying inside like he was? Regardless, he knew that their hope, false or not, only led to a dead end.

That was because the chameleon had given up his search long ago.

He had searched the entire city with a fine-toothed comb. Every street, every alley and every building three times over. He could not count the amount of times he had nearly been shot, sliced, ran over and Chaos knows what else. His life had been put in danger so many times that he honestly didn't care what happened to him now. Espio was certain that the black and purple hedgehog would have succumbed to dehydration or starvation long ago, but even with that thought, there was still one little flicker in his mind.

He still had not found a body. Dead or alive, Arby was quite literally nowhere. If one thing was certain, she could hide incredibly well, so much so that even a master ninja could not find her, or perhaps it was just his mind failing him.

Yes, they had supplies, but Espio had barely eaten a thing. Nothing really worked anymore. His body ached and his mind begged for some sort of relief. That relief is his surrender. The guilt of knowing that he had given up on her brought him to tears and it was those tears that gave him the relief he so desperately sought.

Instead of searching, he spent his nights alone by going to a certain special field hidden within some dense woodland behind the house. The array of flowers had long since died off without the sunlight and it was now a lot of mud with the odd patch of soaked grass. The ninja did not care of the terrain and would stay here until his watch told him it was dawn. Sometimes he would cry and others he wouldn't. It wasn't a good routine by any means, but it was all he had to numb the suffering, even if it was just for a little while.

He was back here again, leaning against the same leafless tree he always would, with his thoughts speaking to him.

"_Should I have gone with her? I could have helped her and then brought her back when things had quietened. No! Vector was right, there was nothing I could do… just like now. I can do nothing to change what has happened. Arby is long gone and her sister is ruling with an iron fist. The Freedom Fighters are but a story now. It seems there was a problem that Sonic couldn't handle after all."_ Espio continued to have conversations in his mind and would keep doing so until his instincts told him that he had had enough, but it seemed that someone had a change of plans as the chameleon could hear the disgusting squelches of someone trying to traverse the mud.

Two amber eyes looked in the direction of the sound. He was about to go invisible, until he saw the figure emerge through the trees and into the middle of the field. The being looked around for a few seconds until locking eyes. Gold and crimson. It was instant recognition and a blind fury erupted from the ninja. He tried to charge, forgetting about the current state of the field. Instead, he took several fast-paced steps before falling forwards into the mud beneath him. Espio didn't move and waited for the mammal to finish him off. After a few moments, he lifted his head to see a hand being held out to him.

The chameleon didn't take it and only glared as he got himself up. The entire front of his body was covered from head to toe, but right now that didn't matter.

"You've got some nerve after everything you've done!" The reptile yelled at him.

"Es, I-"

"You do not have the right to call me that anymore!" Espio was practically screaming, but Shadow wasn't angry. In his mind, he deserved it.

"Espio, I know that I am the last being you want to see right now, but I need to find Arby." The hedgehog told him, but this only angered him further.

"Why?! So you can slit her throat?!"

"No, I believe that she can stop Nocturne." Espio's glare hardened and his fists tightened.

"Was that running through your head when you turned the city against her?!" Shadow's expression saddened and he looked away from the chameleon.

"It wasn't. I'm sorry for what I did. I was merely looking out for myself and I didn't think about the consequences. I cannot take back what I did, but I can make it better, but only if you let me." Espio took a second to put his rage aside and think.

"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know that you're not using me to get to her to be the big hero once again?"

"Because…" Shadow boldly took a step closer to Espio and stared deep into his eyes. It was a look the reptile had not seen in a long time and he was both terrified and curious as to what the hedgehog would do next. "You remember too well of how much I hurt you, but if you do not recall, I never lied to you." Espio froze. The entire event flashed before his eyes.

* * *

He was yelling, they both were. Shadow had turned his back on him by telling him that it was wrong, even though it was him that said that he had wanted this. He felt like an idiot for believing the hedgehog's words that got him into this attachment in the first place. They had both kept it hidden to avoid embarrassment and the unwanted attention, but something changed in the mammal to the point where he could no longer go on with it.

According to him, Espio was his 'weakness' that only slowed him down, distracted him and caused him pain. Where all this had come from? Even now, Espio didn't have the faintest idea, but he took the entire blow and took it so badly that it still hurt to this day. The worst part though was not what Shadow had shouted about, but what Espio had kept hidden.

The reptilian knew from the very beginning that their bond was not allowed, but he took the chance anyway, because he…

Espio knew that his entire life would be at risk if he allowed it to happen and not in a sense that he would die, but more that his own kind would turn their backs on him. His birthplace would no longer recognise his existence and his family would shame him for eternity. Why?

It was a Shinobi rule: no relationships with outsiders. You could be with whoever you loved, male or female regardless. In that sense, they were very open-minded, but the catch was that they also had to be in the Shinobi clan. If this rule was broken, the clan member who broke it, regardless of who they were, would stand before the Bride and face exile. To modern day society, this would seem ridiculous, but to those that grew up in Shinobi, it was completely normal.

Espio would have never gone through with it if he hadn't seen the side to Shadow that had made him fall in the first place. It was a side that the chameleon never spoke of, but secretly cherished.

Fond memories of the pair flashed before him as he once again got lost in his blood, red eyes. Everything from relaxing with him at one of their star-gazing spots, to watching him sleep after a brutal fight with Eggman; he realised that no matter what the memory was, good or bad, Shadow had indeed never lied to him.

* * *

"You're… right." Espio finally mumbled, whilst his mind was still elsewhere.

"I do not intend to hurt you again. That is why I will not hurt her when we find her." Shadow's words brought Espio back.

"Shadow… I've already given up." The chameleon admitted depressingly.

"What?" The mammal's face had never looked so shocked. "But Espio, you don't give up. Not once have you ever given up on anything! Why would you give up on something this important?!"

"I had searched every night ever since her disappearance! I have covered every inch of this city three times over, Shadow! I can't do it anymore! It's too much!"

"The sewers." Shadow interrupted, causing the reptile to suddenly pause in the middle of his outburst.

"What?"

"You know? The underground tunnels? Have you searched down there?" His golden eyes glanced around for a few moments before widening and staring back at Shadow. "Come on! There's an entrance nearby!" They both hurried away from the field and across a few blocks until they came across a manhole on one of the roads. Espio kept watch for any Wolf Packs, while Shadow lifted the cover. The chameleon went down first into the long, abandoned sewer tunnel. The mammal closed the cover behind them and dropped down next to him.

"It reeks down here." Espio complained. "I can't see anything." Just as he said this, Shadow got out a flashlight and handed it to him. "You knew we were coming down here, didn't you?"

"I knew _I_ was, whether you would join me was something entirely different." Shadow admitted.

"What if there are any Packs down here?" The chameleon questioned.

"Packs?" Shadow asked.

"Wolf Packs. That's what we call the groups on the surface." Espio explained.

"Unlikely, there is nothing of value down here, just waste." The tunnels were in a state of disrepair and small bits of debris would fall down on occasion. The walls were lined with cracks and the atmosphere was stained with a green mist.

"Let's keep to the sides; I am not falling into whatever that is." Espio suggested. Shadow nodded and followed the ninja as he led the way with the flashlight. The sewers stretched out across the entire city. Searching them was like searching the streets themselves. The Chaotix member was quick to realise this and voiced his thoughts to Shadow. "Hey, Shadow?"

"Hm?"

"What if it's already too late? It's been about three months since she first disappeared. With no food and no water, there's no way she could have lasted this long."

"I can understand your doubts, but there is food and water down here just… not the uncontaminated kind." Shadow gave an uneasy look.

"So, you're saying that disease is more of a factor here?"

"It is a possibility." Espio sighed. He didn't have a lot of hope to begin with. "You can still call me 'Shad' by the way." The Ultimate Lifeform said out of nowhere, perhaps trying to cheer the chameleon up.

"I'd rather not." Espio explained. "Calling you that brings back too many memories."

"Es…" The sudden nickname caused Espio to flinch, as if Shadow had slapped him across the face. "How… badly did I-"

"Hurt you?" He finished for the black hedgehog. "Shadow… it still hurts now." Espio turned to see the mammal looking incredibly guilty.

"Even after all this time?"

"Yes, Shadow. You may as well have beaten me to within an inch of my life and then crushed my heart in the palm of your hand. Does that put things in perspective for you?" His words were cold, but true.

"I really am sorry." He said quietly before walking past him and continuing forwards. Espio could see that he felt bad, but no amount of apologies were going to heal the scars.

The chameleon caught up with him and they both continued side by side in silence until Shadow spoke.

"You should know that the city still believes that I am hunting Arby purely out of revenge."

"Why are you telling me this?" Espio questioned.

"Because it could be valuable if we needed to get past some of them on the way back." The chameleon nodded, still not quite understanding how it benefited them. He didn't question it and returned his attention to finding the lost hedgehog.

"Arby? Where are you? It's Espio!" The ninja began calling out in case he got an answer.

"Don't be too loud, these tunnels echo." Shadow informed him.

"Understood." He continued. "Arby? I have Shadow with me! He's helping me! If you can hear us, then make some kind of noise! Please!" Shadow listened as Espio's voice became more distressed the longer he called and didn't get a response. While he didn't truly know if they got on or not, he could tell that whatever bond they did have was a strong one.

Suddenly, Shadow's ears perked up at the sound of beeping. He placed a hand on Espio's shoulder to stop him.

"Wait… do you hear that?" The chameleon also listened, but it soon stopped. "Never mind. I must be hearing things." Shadow concluded.

"What was it?" Espio questioned anyway.

"I thought I heard a beeping noise." Shadow told him. The chameleon thought for a second before calling out again.

"Arby? Was that you?" The black hedgehog didn't see what calling her name would do. He saw the shouting as more of a chance to attract unwanted attention.

"Espio, even if there was a noise down here, it could be anyone."

"Even if it is bad news, we can handle it." Espio told him, but Shadow remained unconvinced and kept his guard up. They continued walking through the cracked tunnels. They weren't sure where exactly they were at this point and Shadow was debating whether or not to convince Espio that nothing was down here… that is until beeping disturbed the silence.

"That's a lot closer than before." The hedgehog announced.

"This way!" Espio ran down the tunnel to the left with Shadow following behind him. The chameleon suddenly halted when the noise stopped. Shadow, given no warning at all, slammed into the back of him, sending them both to the concrete floor.

"Did you have to do that?" Shadow groaned, not realising that the chameleon was underneath him. Espio on the other hand, was too aware of where they both were.

"Get off of me. Now." His voice was cold and Shadow soon realised why. He swiftly got to his feet with a clear blush combined with an annoyed expression.

"Sorry." He said, trying to keep his composure.

"Forget about it. Where was it coming from?" They both kept silent, as did the surroundings.

"Look, if this was Arby then why isn't she calling back to us?" This definitely caught Espio's attention before many worried thoughts entered his head.

"She could be hurt or Chaos knows what. Either way, we are finding her and that is that." His voice was stern and determined. Shadow didn't argue; he remembered too well of how stubborn he was.

"We're not going to get very far wandering around." The hedgehog stated.

"We should wait. If that beep has gone off twice, then it will go off again. It could've been going off like this for months and we just never knew about it." A disturbing thought entered Shadow's mind.

"Espio, what if we do find her and she's… well…" The mammal trailed off, knowing that what he was about to say would hurt, even if he wasn't sure exactly why it would hurt. Espio's voice was noticeably quieter when he answered.

"If she is then…" He sighed heavily. "…I really don't know." They both stood in an uneasy silence and glanced around.

*Beep*

"That way!" Shadow pointed ahead of them to the tunnel that went right. Espio wasted no time in running ahead. Shadow followed, but this time kept his distance in case the chameleon wanted to act like a brick wall again. They soon came to a tunnel that was vastly longer than the many they had passed through previously. It was completely dark, except for a dim, red light at the end.

"What is that?" Espio pointed to it.

"Trouble most likely. Turn that light off." The chameleon didn't think that it was anything dangerous, but listened to the hedgehog anyway just to keep him quiet. "Stay behind me." He instructed.

"Do you think I can't take care of myself?" The chameleon asked feeling slightly insulted.

"Your head has been all over the place. I'm just thankful that you haven't been skinned alive yet." Espio shuddered at the thought, but nodded and followed behind the hedgehog. As they got closer, Shadow noticed a silhouette becoming clearer around the red glow. From what he could tell, it was lying down and not moving, but he was ready should it jump up and attack.

"What's the matter?" Espio asked, noticing his body tense up.

"You're not going to like this." Shadow said in a saddened tone. The chameleon stepped in front of him and froze. His amber eyes locked upon the beaten body on the ground. The red glow wasn't some oddly placed trap, but rather a collar that clung tightly around the neck. Who's neck? After a couple of unsteady steps forward, tears began to roll down Espio's scales as he saw the black and purple fur, red bandanna, black and red leather jacket and purple, red and white boots all covered in dried blood along with her gloves. Her body had countless amounts of scratches, cuts and open wounds. The collar wasn't the only disturbing addition however, attached to it were four thick wires that were literally drilled into her head.

"A-A-Arby?" Espio stuttered. He fell to his knees beside her as the collar beeped again. This was the only reason they had found her down here. The chameleon shook as he carefully lifted her up. She was alive, barely and she needed medical attention. "Who-who did this to you? Why?" Shadow, once seeing how upset Espio was, placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke calmly to comfort him.

"We've found her now. She needs help. Do you think you can carry her back while I lead the way?"

"What about on the surface?" He asked with a still unsteady voice. "I can't get her past the Wolf Packs."

"I will handle anyone we run into. You just focus on getting back to the Chaotix in one piece." Espio nodded and slowly picked her up in his arms. Shadow seemed confident now that Arby had been found, but Espio had a gut feeling that this wouldn't end well. He never said it, but the chameleon was worried about him.


	27. An Uncertain Shadow

**Hey everyone! I'm back again with another chapter for you all!**

**Have you all had a good week/weekend? I can't remember my week at all. It's really strange. The only thing that's different is Sage, who is currently shedding. His shedding skin is all white, so he looks a bit like someone dressed as a ghost. Happy Halloween? XD!**

**Other than that, I literally cannot remember the rest of my week.**

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Some surprise stuff happens, which I will let you find out about.**

**Have fun! I'll see you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The tunnels felt more confusing now that they were in a hurry to get out of them. Espio was terrified that she would just die on the way back in his arms. Still, she looked just as she did before her disappearance aside from the obvious. She wasn't skinny like Espio thought she would have been, so she must have been eating. Nonetheless, he was forced to cast aside his questions as Shadow led him to a ladder.

"That can't be the one we used to get down here." Espio told him.

"It's not, but I can use it to figure out where in the city we are." The hedgehog explained before climbing up and poking his head out. The chameleon grew more and more anxious the longer Shadow was up there. The image of a bullet suddenly passing through his skull made him shudder repeatedly. "Dammit." He whispered.

"We're not even close, are we?" Espio predicted.

"We are close… to my place. We're nowhere near yours." Shadow explained as he climbed back down.

"We'll never make it back if we go up now." The ninja pointed out.

"I know. We'll keep going down here for now, at least until we get closer." Shadow continued to lead the way as he had a rough idea of where to go, but he would still check every now and then to make sure they were on the right path. It was a slower process, but it was better than potentially getting killed.

It felt like an eternity as they wandered beneath the ruined city. They could hear gunshots of various Wolf Packs fighting each other upon the streets. Distant explosions could also be heard.

"I guess Nocturne is out to play." Shadow stated with hatred. Espio kept silent and listened to the destruction above. He knew that more lives would be taken. They came across another ladder. Shadow had his concerns about going up it since gunshots could still be heard. Despite Espio's hidden fears, the hedgehog went up anyway and had a look around.

"Please, tell me we're close." Espio hoped out loud.

"We are. The Chaotix is down this road and left at the far end if I'm not mistaken." Shadow explained.

"What's the catch?" Espio asked knowing that so far, it had been too easy.

"There's a war going on up there." The hedgehog stated bluntly.

"I am not becoming a bullet shield, Shadow." The chameleon told him with a voice that conveyed both his anger and concern.

"Damn right you're not. I'm going up first to take any and all attention off of you." Shadow told him sternly.

"What?!" Espio approached him with clear worry in his eyes. "That's suicide, Shadow! You can't do that!" The black mammal stared coldly at him.

"We don't have a choice!" The ninja looked away. He made it clear that he didn't like the situation that they were forced into and Shadow didn't like it either. He placed a hand on the reptile's shoulder, causing his golden eyes to look back at his. "I'll be fine. No gun on this planet can keep up with me." His expression softened, causing Espio to give a small smile. It soon faded however, knowing of what they had to do.

"How long should I wait?" Espio asked.

"Not long. A few seconds at most. Once I'm out, you run." The hedgehog explained one last time before starting to climb.

"Be careful, Shadow." Espio softly warned before he disappeared from view to the city above. The chameleon didn't waste any time. He carefully moved Arby until she was over his shoulder and used his one free arm to climb.

The environment around him was alit with flames and booming with gunfire. He wanted to look for Shadow to see if he was alright, but he knew what he had to do; it was what the hedgehog wanted after all. As soon as both his feet were on the uneven surface, he bolted down the road and didn't look back. Once at the end, he made a swift left only to freeze at a haunting sight.

It took only a few steps down the road for him to notice a cascading wall of fire and smoke reaching into the already blackened sky. It's source? The Chaotix HQ.

"No… She-she didn't…" He whispered to himself in disbelief. Suddenly, aggressive voices grew louder behind him. "Dammit!" He continued quickly towards the Chaotix anyway so that he could hide in the field at the back until the Packs had moved on.

The terrain had gotten no better as mud splashed onto his purple and black shoes. The chameleon hid deep within the woodland and watched as four Pack members, all dressed in black so no one could identify them, came running up into the field only to get annoyed when they found nothing. As expected, they didn't give the wasteland of mud and memories much attention and soon decided that blazes and bullets were a better use of their time.

As soon as they were gone, Espio slowly made his way back to the front of the house. There was no chance that he could get inside to see if Charmy and Vector had gotten out. Flames had broken through all of the windows and the house itself could barely be seen. Suddenly, the structure gave way and collapsed completely. Espio jumped back before staring hopelessly upon his former home that was now a pile of rubble on the ground.

"Vector… Charmy…" He whimpered, allowing tears to fall. While he couldn't be sure if they had made it or not, his gut told him exactly who caused it and he knew that she wouldn't have cared, no matter who was inside. For now though, he had to put the thought of his fallen comrades to one side and think about where he could go. Arby was still badly hurt, so he needed somewhere that could give the proper treatment. The most obvious being the hospital, but that was too far and it would have been heavily populated by Wolf Packs anyway. He needed somewhere smaller, but just as advanced.

"_Tails."_ He thought instantly. His house was properly defended and Vanilla was there. She may only be a nurse, but it was better than nothing at a time like this. The chameleon glanced around to make sure no one was nearby before walking away. He knew travelling on the surface was bad enough as it was, but he couldn't get back to the nearest sewer entrance without being turned into a sponge. This was his only option and he had to take it.

* * *

"Get that fucker!" It was inevitable and Espio knew it. He had avoided them for a small while at least, but a group of six had found him and were now chasing him relentlessly. He weighed the pros and cons of a solution in his mind, but as soon as he found a hidden alley between two not-so-stable buildings around a corner, he placed Arby down before they could see and stood confidently in the middle of the road. The group sprinted until they saw him just standing there. With evil grins, they surrounded him, each with their own weapons in hand. Luckily, only one of them had a gun; the leader, who was a tall, dark blue hawk. He wore a black, leather trench coat, torn grey jeans and black boots with a knife hidden in one of them. Espio stared coldly at him, but didn't move.

"You have one more chance." The chameleon said calmly. "You can walk away and nothing has to happen here."

"Why the hell would we do that?" The hawk spat at him with a chuckle.

"Because your fate depends on it." A few of the other members laughed and mocked him, the leader included. "The choice is yours." Espio finished.

"Look around you. Six against one. Do you seriously think that were gonna walk away? Or are you just asking that so you don't get your ass handed to ya?" The other five laughed and got their weapons ready.

"Is that so? If that is the case, then fine. However, you can't say I didn't warn you." Espio unsheathed his sword from his back and got into a fighting stance.

"You know the drill." The leader told them as the other five charged at him. Espio easily jumped over them and kicked one in the back, knocking him to the ground. Two of the four that were still standing came at him, both with chains as their weapon of choice. The one on his left swung first. Espio grabbed the chain mid-swing and pulled him close. He then used the momentum to turn him around so that he would shield him from the second member's attack. Metal made hard contact with his face and was enough to knock the member out. The second member was now angered by this, meaning that Espio could easily predict his next move. He lashed out, allowing the ninja to duck under his arm and use the hilt of his sword to strike him in the head.

"_Two down, three to go."_ The chameleon thought as he focused on the remaining trio, who were now all on their feet. The one on the left had a long pipe, the middle had two hatchets and the right had a baseball bat with various nails hammered through it.

"Whatchya gonna do now, ya little shit?" The one with the pipe asked him. Espio didn't answer and merely beckoned them with one finger. "As ya wish." He finished before they surrounded him and attacked at the same time from different angles. The reptilian ducked and allowed them all to hit each other. The one with the bat easily did the most damage as one of the nails landed in the eye of the one with the pipe.

"Ah fuck!" He cursed as the other member cried out in agony. While they were distracted, Espio took this opportunity to deal with Mr. Hatchet one on one. Out of fury, he threw one of his hatchets only for the ninja to catch it with his one free hand before throwing it as far as he could out of reach. The member glared at him before running and bringing his one remaining hatchet down. Before it cracked into his skull, the chameleon dove to the side and sliced his sword through one of his legs once he had rolled into a kneeling position. He too cried out as he fell to the ground clutching the bleeding limb.

"Quite a display." The leader said to him from some distance away. "You're clearly good with close combat, lizard, but at a distance, you can't do a thing." From his trench coat, he pulled out a giant, silver hand cannon. Espio glanced at it before looking the hawk in the eyes.

"At a distance, perhaps. But you can't shoot what you can't see." Espio instantly vanished right in front of his eyes. The hawk glanced around quickly and listened for any sign of his presence, but Espio had done this many times before. He knew exactly what to do and how to do it.

"Show yourself!" The hawk demanded.

"As you wish." Espio growled. A stray shot was fired in the panic, which was nowhere near the chameleon to injure him. He smacked the gun out of his hand and slid through his legs before he could punch him. From there, he slammed the hilt of his sword down on the back of his head, sending him to the ground. He kicked him hard in the face to stun him before asking a question as he removed the blade from his boot and threw it out of arms reach. "How many lives have you taken with that thing?" The chameleon's voice was still calm, but had a venomous edge to it.

"Why do you care? You think killing me will bring any of them back?" He chuckled as he laid at the ninja's feet. Fire seemed to ignite his amber eyes as he mercilessly brought the blade of his sword down onto the hand that was holding the gun, slicing it off completely. The leader screamed in pain and clutched his now handless arm.

"Killing you would make me no better, but this will be a permanent reminder of those that fell victim to your horrific intentions. It will remind you of how disgusting and pathetic you truly are." He returned his sword to his back and walked to the alley. Arby was still unconscious and Espio knew that she would stay that way, at least until she had gotten help. He picked her back up and walked away, leaving the entire Pack to suffer within the burning streets.

* * *

Apparently his day wasn't over yet. A collapsed skyscraper had blocked his original path, meaning that he had to find an alternate route to Tails' house. He sighed at his run of luck, but continued on nonetheless. His destination wasn't directly in the city centre, but it wasn't on the outskirts either. All he could do now was keep walking until fate handed him something or he found somewhere that he deemed suitable to hide and rest. His two golden eyes quickly looked up to the sight of some kind of drone hovering not too far above him.

As soon as he saw it, the drone lowered itself to Espio's level. He stepped back and glared, thinking that it was one of Eggman's machines. A camera was visible on the front and, upon further inspection, a small white and orange tail logo was on one side.

"Tails?" Espio asked, hoping that he could somehow hear him through the drone. It moved up and down as if to mimic a nodding motion. The chameleon quickly began to explain the situation. "I can't tell you everything, but Arby is badly hurt. I'm trying to get to your house. The Chaotix was destroyed and I don't know if Vector and Charmy are alive." Fresh tears ran down his face as he spoke. "Please… I need help." The drone began to move away at a slower speed, before stopping a short distance away and turning back to face him. The chameleon gave a confused expression as the drone moved up and down again. "Follow?" He questioned. The drone repeated the movement. Espio nodded and began to follow the drone.

He only ran into one more Wolf Pack, which thankfully, were just passing by on a scouting run. After that, he finally made it to a heavily sealed house. The drone went inside through an opening in the roof, while Knuckles let Espio in through the front.

"Sweet Chaos!" The echidna exclaimed upon seeing the sight of them.

"No time." Espio said quickly. "She needs help."

"Through here!" Tails called out as he gestured for him to go into another room. It was a corridor, which had a closet on the right. In the closet was a secret hatch, which led to what he could only describe as an underground hideout.

It was enormous, like it was another house beneath his house! They entered an enormous room with one huge, metallic table in the centre. Espio could only assume that it was some kind of meeting area. There were several separated areas coming off of it like a workshop, sleeping quarters, food area and what Espio was looking for, a medical area.

He followed the young fox and carefully placed the hedgehog upon one of the beds.

"I'll go get Vanilla. She's had medical training, although only as a nurse. I hope you understand-" Tails was cut off.

"I understand that there's only so much she can do." Espio spoke with a lack of energy. The fox couldn't help but sadden at this. "But any help is appreciated, Tails. Thank you."

"It's not a problem, Espio. I'll be right back." With that, Tails ran out the room and back into the main house. Espio stayed right next to Arby. Now that there was light, he could see that this wasn't just some beating. To him, it looked more like torture with the various slices, bruises and the vast amount of dried blood upon her fur, as well as fresh blood coming through the four wounds on her head where the wires were drilled in. Specifically, two were drilled in at the back and one was just behind each ear.

"_What the hell are these things? What are they for?"_ Espio thought as he took a closer look at them.

"Sick bastard." The chameleon whispered, knowing exactly who had done this to her now that he could think a little clearer. He sat in the corner on the floor and brought his knees up. He rested both his arms on top of them and lowered his head, allowing hidden tears to fall.

"_How?"_ He repeated over and over in his mind as he twiddled the Shuriken that still hung around his neck. Everything was about as fine as it could be in this apocalyptic hell hole before he left. He wasn't gone that long, was he? Upon returning, he had lost his home, his friends and his way of life.

"How?" Espio spoke with a broken voice. His weakened body shuddered against the weight of his current situation. Could it get any worse? He knew his luck by now. His one-sided battle was by no means over yet.


	28. Blink of an Eye

**Hey everyone! Here is another chapter for you which again, I am really excited to see your reactions for! It's a longer chapter this time and plenty is revealed about the background of one character in particular!**

**I hope you all have had a good week! I can remember mine this time, hehe! I didn't do all that much, I've been playing The Sims 3 for most of it. I did however, find the greatest Sonic the Hedgehog jumper ever! I do not regret a thing! ^.^**

**You can all read now, sorry to keep you waiting. Enjoy and I will see you all next week! **

**Arby xx**

* * *

He wasn't sure as to how long had passed, but his instinct told him that it had been at least a few hours. Espio managed to take a quick nap, only to be woken up by a nightmare. It worried him if anything. The chameleon knew he wasn't the type to be frightened by something that he thought was insignificant. That's how he knew the city's current state was getting to him and his own situation definitely added to his stress.

His scales were now a darker shade of purple and his head had a constant ache. Tails and Vanilla had been in just before he dozed off. Arby now had a good amount of bandages wrapped around her which, for now at least, kept the bleeding to a minimum.

"_All it took was for Knuckles to still be on Angel Island. All it took was for Shadow to not act on impulse. All it took was for you to not enter that portal."_ He jumped back when he realised that he was glaring at the still unconscious hedgehog.

"No." He growled quietly. "Nocturne won't get to me. This wasn't your fault, none of it." Espio continued to remind himself of it, but it seriously bothered him that he was beginning to get wound up at all. His mind was starting to strain. The ninja may have been smart enough to not fall for Nocturne's words at the start, but now that his mind was weaker, he knew he was slipping. Nocturne had to be stopped, if not, Espio simply didn't know.

"Hey." A strong male voice brought him from his thoughts. Espio looked up and nodded at the Guardian, who sat next to him on the floor. "How're you holding up? Or is that a stupid question?" The chameleon sighed.

"It is not stupid. I just wish I had a certain answer for you." Espio replied.

"I'm sorry, Espio." The reptile gave the echidna an odd look.

"What for?"

"For letting my guard down. Lately, I've been leaving Angel Island more often and now look. All of this could've been avoided if I had just stayed where I was." His face alone showed how guilty he felt.

"There was no way you or anyone else could have predicted this." Espio tried to tell him, but Knuckles was convinced that as a Guardian, he had failed.

"That is why I should have stayed on the island and never left it. Just because I can't see the future, doesn't mean that I shouldn't be prepared for it." The chameleon wanted to argue, but just didn't have the energy for it. In truth, he was looking for someone to blame just like Knuckles. It was odd how small changes like someone's location could change the course of action. "Look, I'm just sorry, okay? I'll make damn sure this never happens again… assuming we get out of this anyway." Espio didn't say anything else as the red guardian got up and returned upstairs.

Suddenly, movement caught his attention. He got up immediately when he saw that Arby was awake. She stared with a confused expression at the light above her before turning her head. Her eyes closed tightly as soon as she saw purple in her vision.

"Arby-"

"Don't tell me where I am!" She cut him off quickly. "Please…" Her voice gave the impression that she was about to burst into tears.

"Why not?" Espio asked. Arby's body shook the more she spoke.

"Eggman, he-" Before she could say another word, she fell to the ground and cried out in agony as the collar around her neck gave her a nasty shock.

"You bastard! Leave her alone!" He growled harshly, thinking that Eggman may be able to hear him through the collar. The shock only lasted a couple of seconds, but it wasn't exactly weak. It was intended for torture and that's exactly what she had to endure.

"D-don't give him an-any info!" She spoke weakly whilst on her hands and knees.

"Arby, he'll…" Espio trailed off.

"I know, b-but it's better than telling him where you are."

"Can he hear us?" The chameleon questioned.

"He can hear what I hear and see what I see."

"_So, that's why."_ The chameleon thought angrily.

"He can also talk to us, or me to give me orders. If I disobey…"

"Sweet Chaos! You're practically his slave!" Arby could only nod and shiver. Fast footsteps could be heard approaching. Espio was quick to explain before any of them began to question.

"You will tell me where they hide!" Eggman bellowed from a hidden speaker installed inside the collar before shocking her again.

"Fuck you!" She screamed whilst dealing with the immense pain and collapsing on the floor.

"Tails! You have to get this thing off of her!" Espio demanded, but the fox was quick to point out a few flaws.

"It's not that easy, Espio! Firstly, no one here is trained for surgery, especially surgery involving the head. Second, based on where those wires are, removing them would also take away her ability to see and hear!" Time seemed to freeze upon Tails' last comment. Espio looked with fear to the hedgehog that refused to look up from the floor. It internally broke him to see tears fall from her face. How much had she endured? Yet the thought of being deaf and blind was what scared her the most?

"There has to be something! Anything!" The chameleon pleaded as he helped the tortured mammal to sit back on the bed, but Tails was right. No Mobian there was capable of something that advanced and even if someone was, it would take away her hearing and sight. How did the doctor even get them on in the first place? Espio didn't want to know.

"Looks like you don't have a choice." A sinister voice sounded from around Arby's neck.

"Why?" Espio growled with the purest of hatred. "Why on Mobius would you do this to someone who has done literally nothing to you?! How can you not see the pain you're causing?!" Everyone was stunned as Espio didn't relent. Tears streamed freely from him as he tried so hard to make the pain stop. A few of the others cried themselves as they listened. Espio was usually the quiet one, the one that always kept his composure no matter what the circumstances. It hurt them to see him hurting.

"Espio-" Eggman tried to speak, but the chameleon silenced him.

"No! You listen to me! Listen to one of the many voices that detest you! You will hear the pain you have caused! I have lost everything! My home, family, friends, possessions! Everything! Do you have any idea where my one last hope was?" He paused briefly to catch a breath before shouting. "With the one Mobian that you have effectively stolen a life from! Her!" Multiple pairs of eyes widened, Arby's included as she kept her gaze on the floor. The ninja's words were the last thing she expected. "I know she can stop Nocturne. I have complete faith that she can, but you have stopped her! You, a self-proclaimed genius, have ruined us and for what? Just so you could gain some kind of advantage, am I right?" The madman was silent on the other end and the other Mobians were just as quiet. "I hope you're proud of yourself. I bet your grandfather is." An uneasy silence lasted for a few minutes. No one had the courage to speak.

"You really have a way with words, don't you? You little pest." Espio only glared at the collar his voice was coming from, but noticed that his voice sounded a little off. He continued when the chameleon didn't reply. "I let my guard down when releasing that psychotic chameleon from my ship. I knew of her powers, but in her state at the time, she was next to useless. I had no idea that she would awaken so quickly."

"You can thank Shadow for that." Arby muttered coldly.

"Assuming he's still alive." Espio spoke sadly. "He helped me bring Arby back to the Chaotix, before I found out it had been burnt to the ground. It was a warzone back there."

"You underestimate him. My grandfather created him as the Ultimate Lifeform. A few bullets won't be enough to kill him. He's probably hiding until he can regain his strength." The doctor told them.

"That's not going to make a difference. Alive or not, he can't touch something that is impenetrable." The chameleon reminded him.

"That's where Arby comes in." Eggman continued. "One thing that you may need to know is that I have not been shocking her with electrical energy."

"I don't want to know how you tortured her!" Espio snapped with disgust, but Tails was the one to hear the man out.

"Wait a second, Espio!" The fox then turned towards the hedgehog, as if turning to Eggman. "What kind of energy have you been using?" He asked.

"Whilst… in my care, let's say…" Espio growled lowly in his throat. "…It had come to my attention that she was utterly powerless. One of my goals was to remedy this problem. My method of doing this, whilst keeping her disciplined, was by shocking her with Chaos energy."

"That's… crazy." Knuckles whispered.

"Perhaps, but effective. It may not be on the level of Shadow, but she _can_ now use Chaos powers." Eggman said with some pride in his voice.

"Why should any of us believe you?" Espio questioned coldly.

"Your mistrust doesn't surprise me, especially after your moving little outburst earlier, but I can prove it."

"How? In case you've forgotten, Nocturne has all of the Chaos Emeralds." Amy jumped in, feeling a tad left out.

"If Arby would be so kind as to look in her jacket pocket…" The doctor trailed off, leaving everyone to stare at the hedgehog as she unzipped her pocket and pulled out a glowing, purple gem.

"What the fuck?" She whispered in disbelief, before putting it away again.

"That has to be a fake emerald." Tails pointed out.

"Of course it is, fox boy! Even a man as smart as I cannot get past that wall of uncontrollable power, also known as Nocturne." Arby rolled her eyes at this.

"So, how do I test this theory of yours?" The hedgehog female questioned.

"You just have to think about it and no, you don't have to shout it every time you use it. Shadow just loves the sound of his own voice." Eggman told her.

"_No, he doesn't."_ Espio instantly thought since knowing the hedgehog more than most.

"I must warn you, your level of power is far smaller than that of Shadow or Nocturne. Using too much power or using them too often could drain more energy than you can handle."

"_I knew there would be a catch."_ Arby thought, remembering how her run of luck usually goes.

"W-what do you mean by that?" The chameleon's stutter was certainly something that caught the hedgehog by surprise.

"You're basically saying that using my so-called "powers" too much will drain my life energy until I die, right?" Arby said with a good amount of frustration.

"Correct." Eggman confirmed.

"How did you know that?" Espio asked with worry.

"It's how my luck runs, Es." Her voice lacked energy and carried with it an uncomfortable amount of hopelessness.

"Then we have to find Shadow." The chameleon ordered.

"How? We run the risk of getting killed just by walking out the door." Amy reminded them with a clear amount of anxiousness. Cream and Cheese were also there, remaining by Vanilla's side. The younger rabbit was growing more fearful by the day, even with her mother's reassurance.

"I will look for him myself." Espio stated. Suddenly, a hand grabbed his wrist. He turned to see that it was Arby's. She was shaking her head as she spoke, still with her eyes to the ground.

"Don't even think about it. You've been through enough." The hedgehog tried to give her words some authority, but they only came out worried. "What about Sonic? Where the hell is he in all this?" Tails shifted awkwardly before delivering some unexpected bad news.

"Well umm, he tried to face Nocturne, but she…" The fox couldn't say any more, so Knuckles grimly finished it for him with anger.

"That bitch used her powers to pin him long enough so that she could snap both of his legs!" Espio and Arby both flinched at the thought.

"Fuck!" Arby exclaimed.

"He's upstairs now." Tails spoke sadly. "A-anyway, I still have my drones. I could send them out to at least look for Shadow overhead." Tails suggested. The others nodded in agreement.

"In the meantime, we should come up with a plan of action. If we're going to take that chameleon down, then we have to be prepared." Knuckles explained.

"If I'm not going anywhere, then I am staying down here." Espio spoke again.

"Maybe you can help Arby get used to her powers." Amy told him before scratching the back of her head and shrugging her shoulders. "Assuming Eggman is telling the truth."

"Of course I am!" The doctor shouted feeling insulted.

"I wish I could turn this fucking thing off." Arby groaned with annoyance before getting back on topic. "Anyway, I can't just get up and look around for obvious reasons." She reminded everyone.

"Turn the lights off?" Amy suggested.

"It'll be pitch black down here." Tails said with concern.

"Perfect." Arby said with a thumbs up above her head. Espio didn't like the idea, but it was what they had to work with for now.

"Okay… but for Chaos sake don't break anything." Tails warned, clearly concerned for the various equipment he kept in his bunker. Nonetheless, they all left the underground area and turned the lights off as they did so, leaving Arby and Espio in complete darkness apart from the dim glow of her collar.

"That's better." Arby stated as she finally lifted her head and rubbed the back of her neck. The ninja stood nearby was quiet, even by his standards. It stayed awkwardly silent for about 30 seconds until the hedgehog broke it. "You've got a lot on your mind, haven't you?" She asked.

"Your intuition is getting better." Espio chuckled nervously.

"The darkness helps. At least I can't see you staring at me." The dark female saddened upon remembering what Espio had said earlier during his little breakdown. "Es, about what you said earlier… I have no idea what to say."

"It's fine." He said dryly.

"It's not." Arby replied just as bluntly. "You're hurt, I know you are and your reaction to Eggman only proved it." The chameleon remained silent, not feeling completely comfortable with the sudden turn of attention. "I know you're trying to keep strong and all that, but you and I both know that what Nocturne did has hit you hard."

"And what you've been through means nothing?" Espio said with an edge to his voice. "You're acting as if I'm the only one hiding what I'm really feeling, but I know that what you've endured is tearing you apart inside. So, why aren't you showing it?" The hedgehog turned away from where his voice was coming from.

"Because I know crying won't reverse it. Screaming won't solve my fear. Begging won't make any of it better. I'm not showing it because I've given up on it. I could do whatever I want, but I will still be tortured one way or another." The purple ninja couldn't see much, but his eyes couldn't look away from her general direction. A disturbing thought came to his mind, which he had to voice.

"Arby, you weren't… tortured back home, were you?" His anxiety was clear, but Arby didn't mind his dark curiosity.

"Not this badly." She said depressingly.

"You-you were?" She grinned at his stutter, finding it cute.

"In short, I was bullied, abused and beaten all throughout my childhood, most of it by my own father. If that wasn't enough, my best friend was in a car accident that left him in a coma for about half a year before passing away." Espio's jaw hung. The chameleon had no idea. What could he say to that?

"Uh…" That was about all he could force through his throat. Arby let out a chuckle before continuing.

"It's alright. It's not a big deal." Espio was only stunned further by this.

"Not a big deal?!" It then suddenly hit him; her emotional numbness.

He remembered being woken up by Nocturne's voice outside. He got up and went to the roof via his window and observed. Arby soon joined her and sat on the front doorstep as they talked about their condition. He didn't believe it then, but he did now. "You can't feel it, can you? Just like way back when Nocturne came crawling back to you with her tail between her legs." Arby had no idea what he was talking about to begin with, until she remembered her sister's return after joining Shadow and Rouge.

"How do you know about that?" She questioned, her face going red from embarrassment. At least he couldn't see it.

"I heard you both talking, but it makes sense now. You literally have no idea of the severity of what you've been through." His voice suddenly conveyed sadness. "You don't have a clue how tragic that is."

"Why is it tragic?" Arby asked, proving his point.

"Exactly. It's dangerous. Anyone could take full advantage of you, but you wouldn't feel the emotion to do anything about it, making you vulnerable to it happening again." The reptilian, after feeling his way around, sat next to the hedgehog and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I don't understand. It bothers you that I'm _not_ a complete wreck?" The hedgehog questioned.

"No, it bothers me that you're hollow." Arby was still lost, but then flipped through everything she knew about him and his mind.

He had nearly broken down when giving Eggman a piece of his mind. Way back on Shadow's rooftop, he seemed upset when he had to leave her behind. Thinking back further however, she remembered the comics, when his clan was forced to bow to the Iron Queen. Once she had been defeated, he had to confront the rest of the Chaotix and tell them the information that he had secretly been gathering on them. She could never forget that one, solitary tear that fell as he hid his face in his hand. It may have taken a lot, but at least Espio could understand how devastating a situation could get.

"How do I fix it?" She asked, but then froze upon remembering hearing that exact line before from none other than Nocturne.

* * *

"_So, how did you fix it?" I felt a stab of guilt. Was she really that naïve?_

"_What did I just say? I still feel it now. That hypothetical hole where something should be but isn't. The hollowness that follows me every damn second. There is no 'fixing it', Nocturne. You've got to learn to live with it."_

* * *

Espio didn't have time to answer.

"Holy shit…" She whispered.

"Arb?" The ninja questioned.

"There is no fixing it…" She repeated her sister's words from long ago. Espio didn't know what to do in this situation because he had never been in it before. Apparently, trying to avoid personal situations wasn't going to work anymore.

"Arby?" He questioned once more.

"Espio, I can't be cured or fixed or whatever and you're right, I really have no idea how truly tragic my situation is. All I know is that I cannot feel happiness or love or anything like that. It's just a fact that I thought simply didn't matter, but you're making it sound like it does." She explained with a voice that was monotone and lacked emotion altogether. Espio's sounded uncharacteristically sad.

"I remember you saying this before, but I never believed it. Happiness doesn't mean smiling, singing and skipping down the street. To me at least, it's looking around at what you have and not wanting to change it for anything." Unexpected droplets of water escaped his faded, amber eyes. Arby couldn't see them, but his broken voice had her in tears herself. "You have no clue how much it hurts that you've never felt such a blessing; that you've never in your life felt safe, secure and happy." Arby sniffed before she spoke. How was he so upset over something he didn't have?

"I can only feel the bad things, Espio. Sometimes when I was lying in bed back on Earth, my thoughts got the better of me and I swear I could feel my mind ripping itself apart. Nocturne used to comfort me until I had cried myself to sleep." She paused and closed her eyes tight, lowering her head again. "I don't have her anymore. She-she got her own body and left me. I can't blame her. I deserve to go insane alone. I have no right to drag her down with me." Without another word, Espio wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.

"You don't need her and dammit you don't deserve any of that!" He spoke with tears still falling. One gloved hand gently caressed the side of her face as she cried into his chest. "She may have lost her mind, but you haven't and you won't. I know you won't. Please, don't fall to your voices." His pleading was tearing her apart and her break down was letting him know that.

"Why are you saying this?" She managed to say between her uneven breathing.

"To make you feel something." He answered, holding her tighter. Before she could say anything else, a deafening boom sounded from above them and the entire world began to shake violently.

"What was that?!" Arby shouted in a panic. Espio said nothing and reacted immediately. More explosions went off as he dragged her underneath the medical bed. The hedgehog shook with fear as Espio kept a tight hold of her, comforting the mammal as he did so. After a few minutes, the quakes subsided and the volume was nearly silent, apart from the faint sound of flames from above.

Espio crawled out while Arby could barely move.

"It's alright." He spoke softly before gently grabbing her arm and helping her up.

"W-w-what was that?" She repeated, this time a lot quieter.

"Come." He instructed as he made his way to the ladder, which was now visible because of a distinct orange glow coming down from it. His golden eyes looked up to see dense smoke clouding the now visible sky. With one hard swallow, he began to climb with an anxious Arby following close behind. Part of the ladder was completely missing, meaning that they were greeted with the aftermath a little bit sooner. Upon reaching the top, it was clear. History had repeated itself.

Nothing was left. What used to be a safe haven for most of the Freedom Fighters was now a pile of blackened and fiery debris. They were both silent. Arby shook her head slowly as her watery eyes looked at the devastation that had been left behind. Espio's eyes matched the flames around him. The others didn't stand a chance and it caused a white rage to bubble in his gut. His golden eyes looked towards her until she looked back at him, their eyes locking.

Without saying anything, he held out his hand. Arby looked back forth between it and his eyes until she placed her hand around his, holding it tightly just as he did in return.

"No more of this." He stated.

"But… it's just us." She spoke with a hint of fear, but nothing would deter the chameleon this time.

"'Us' is all we need." Keeping their hands locked, they walked away with only one thought.

"_Revenge. No matter what the cost."_


	29. Universally Equal

**Hello everyone! It's a little later today, because I actually had stuff to do. Shocking, I know. ;)**

**Anyway, this is the chapter where a new OC appears. He belongs to a friend of mine, but I will put a disclaimer. I would like to thank ElectroDGX for allowing to use him and helping me to get his character accurate. You're awesome to work with and I thank you for being so co-operative with getting things done! :D**

**I won't delay this anymore and allow you to read in peace! :)**

**See you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

**_Disclaimer: Kyousuke Watanabe is an original character created by ElectroDGX. He belongs to him. He is used in this story because he kindly requested it._**

* * *

Heavy rain crashed upon the duo as they walked side by side through the strangely empty streets. Lightning struck the planet's surface constantly causing the hedgehog to jump with fright.

"_I know you're coming, Arby. I sense the adrenaline coursing through your veins and the fear that accompanies it. You already know where I am. It was where we started and where you will end."_

"I-I can hear her, Espio." Arby stuttered to the chameleon by her side.

"She can talk to you?" He questioned.

"Apparently." She answered as she quivered beneath her fur.

"It's okay. She can't hurt you." He reassured, but Arby wasn't convinced.

"Not yet anyway." They both looked around with every step they took. Where were the Wolf Packs? Where was anyone? They still couldn't be 100% certain who had attacked Tails' house. Neither of them had seen her, but it wasn't exactly hard to Chaos Control in and out in an instant. It could've been Eggman. The thought prompted Espio to ask.

"When you were captured, did you know where you were?" His voice seemed a little uneasy, which Arby found cute if anything. She didn't mind him bringing it up because she trusted him.

"On his ship without a doubt. He was kind enough to tell me that we were still in the desert." She explained.

"How did he get past the fire walls?"

"I thought the same thing. He never told me, in case I escaped most likely." The hedgehog told him.

"Then it must've been her who attacked us."

"Well, anyone could've attacked us. Only one person in the city is as merciless as to kill defenceless Mobians, including children, without any warning." Arby corrected him to some extent, although she wished that she wasn't right about it.

"We can't think about it now. We've got to-" Espio halted his pace and dragged Arby into a nearby alley. She stared at him with wide eyes, silently questioning his sudden change in behaviour. The chameleon peered around the corner. He gestured for the hedgehog to do the same. Ahead of them, an enormous group of Wolf Pack members had gathered outside a fire wall.

"We aren't anywhere near the outskirts." Arby pointed out.

"I know. Nocturne must be there, but I cannot get you past those Wolves, not that I'm going to try." Espio told her.

"So, we're screwed?" She asked. The chameleon scanned the surroundings and found his solution in the form of a manhole cover.

"We can go through the sewer tunnels." He hurried over and lifted the cover. Luckily, the Packs were too distracted to notice them. Espio was about to jump down until he noticed Arby staring fearfully at the gap in the road. He then remembered that he and Shadow had found her in these tunnels. From that, he could only assume that she remembered being abandoned down there. "I'll be with you the whole time." He reassured whilst remaining crouched next to the sewer entrance.

"I know. I just… don't like being underground." She chuckled nervously.

"I can understand that, but you have my word that I won't leave your side." A small smile tugged at his mouth, which Arby gladly returned.

"It never crossed my mind that you would." After checking once more that no one was looking, she made her way down the ladder and into the tunnels with Espio following behind.

As they made their way closer to Nocturne, the roars of the people above steadily became louder. They were furious, for a good reason, but Arby only became more anxious with every step she took.

"Espio?" The chameleon instinctively looked next to him only to see that she had stopped a few steps back.

"What is it?" He asked with concern. She hesitated to say anything else, but was then distracted when Espio walked up to her with a soft expression. "You're scared." His voice was gentle. Her bottom lip trembled and she nodded just enough for him to notice.

"P-petrified." Her voice was barely a whisper as she held back a new wave of emotion.

"Of Nocturne?" Espio questioned.

"Of a lot of things, Es." She told him, her voice recovering a little. The ninja wasn't sure what to say, so he simply said nothing and allowed her to continue as she paced the concrete surface. "Yeah, I'm scared of facing Nocturne. She's out of her damn mind. Who wouldn't be? But it's not just her. I'm scared of what might happen. One of us could get hurt or… worse." She deliberately avoided his golden eyes whilst he took in what she had told him.

"You're scared of death?" In truth, he didn't fully understand what she was afraid of. To him, death was an act of honour and unrivalled selflessness.

"Not the actual act of death, no." She explained. "I don't know about you, but I am terrified of never seeing you guys again." Espio's eyes widened at her words. Before he could think about why, she continued. "Does it ever cross your mind about what you could leave behind? About whether anyone would miss you? Or who you would miss?" The chameleon found himself lost for words, something which he questioned was possible or not for him. The hedgehog was certainly digging deeper than he expected. He simply thought that death was death and that was it. What got to him most however, was the thought of leaving the others behind. How would Vector and Charmy react if he was killed? Assuming they were still alive. How would Arby react?

"_Why am I asking myself that?"_ He thought. Yes, they had gotten closer with the recent events, but she would be just fine. On the other hand, she could be killed and it would be him on the 'left behind' end of things. How would he react? At first, he thought he wouldn't care, but with more thought came a slow and scary realisation.

Arby observed as the ninja's face flinched and conveyed an odd sense of fear.

"I-I'm sorry." She stuttered with guilt. "I didn't mean to throw all of this on you, especially with what we're about to face. I was just being weak." His golden gaze landed back on her with his expression looking… depressed.

"I admire you for saying what I have never thought of." One brow quickly rose upon the hedgehog.

"W-what do you mean?"

"Up until now, I saw death as a very simple act. There is no before or after because once you're gone, you're gone. You don't remember it. Now however, you have made me question. Should Vector and Charmy be alive and find out of my passing, would they really be that upset?" The question made Arby's stomach tighten. She certainly didn't expect him to start talking like this, but she soon remembered how the rest of the gang treated him.

In Sonic Heroes, the very first Chaotix cut scene, Espio tells the other two of the 'bad feeling' he got when they received a mission from an unknown client. Vector quickly told him 'don't be silly' before rushing out the door with Charmy; the chameleon having little choice but to follow. In the end however, Espio was right and their client turned out to be Eggman. At face value, the event seemed completely lacking of significance, until it dawned on her that he might think like she does and keep a hold of the smaller things until they build up and overload.

Next was Shadow the Hedgehog, where she remembered first finding Espio with the others trying to hack Eggman's computer. It was clear in her mind how Vector was rushing the chameleon to get the task done despite the ninja telling him that 'data retrieval isn't exactly my specialty'. This wasn't the only time the croc had done this. He also rushed him to hack into the computer on the Space Colony ARK.

In Sonic Rivals 2, Espio was sent to investigate Silver, a hedgehog that the Chaotix leader thought was behind the Chao disappearances. Instead, he made friends with him, learnt that he was hiding them to save them from Eggman Nega and as a result, helped to stop him. Once Vector found out, he was furious, completely ignoring the fact that he had aided to save their world and Silver's.

In Sonic Colours, Espio was literally stood right next to them and they had no idea, even to the point of asking where he was. Arby couldn't help but smile.

"_He's one hell of a ninja."_ She thought.

Outside of the games, he was barely treated any better in the TV series, but soon got that out of her mind since the chances of that universe being this one were very slim. Regardless, she knew the ninja was a deep thinker and she knew that others were completely oblivious to it, with the only exceptions being herself and Shadow, although she had no idea about that.

In short, he was underappreciated and it was now beginning to show.

"Espio, I can't blame you for asking that. Vector takes you for granted every day and Charmy's too young to understand. I've seen it." He gave a brief surprised look before remembering that this world was fictional in Arby's. "Despite all of that, I think they would be utterly devastated if they were to lose you. They may not say it, but I bet you mean the world to them." The chameleon gave a small nod, but kept his eyes away from the mammal's. "Your life is far too important for Nocturne to just take away. You don't deserve that and I won't let it happen. If anyone is going to die today, then it should be-"

"Please, don't finish that sentence." He suddenly turned to her with a face of anger, but eyes of fear. "Don't just put your life on the line like that. Nothing is worth that."

"Perhaps not in your eyes." She spoke softly whilst looking towards the ground. "But to me, your whole world is worth that and the many lives that live upon it." The ninja could only stand in silence as the hedgehog's thoughts travelled to his ears. "I have never felt a sense of belonging in my entire life until I came here. I have never felt more at home than when I was with you guys back at Chaotix. My life is nothing. I owe you so much more for everything you have given me."

"I-I thought you were scared of leaving us behind?" Espio reminded her. She smiled at his stutter.

"I am, but I'm more scared of _you_ leaving _us_." Her voice softened.

"When I said nothing is worth your life, I meant it. That includes me." His voice was stern and he took a step towards her, almost trying to force the mammal to change her mind set. Her head turned and she gave him a determined glare. A few seconds later however, her expression became defeated and she nodded.

"Yeah, sure." She sighed before beginning to walk again. "We should go." He wouldn't admit it, but the chameleon felt incredibly uncomfortable with how that conversation ended. Espio made a mental note to keep an eye on her before following.

Another explosion sounded from above. They both jumped and looked up. Espio looked at Arby, only to notice that she had chosen to ignore it and keep walking.

"_This isn't right."_ He told himself. The chameleon caught up with her as she approached a ladder.

"Is this it?" She asked as she heard his footsteps behind her.

"From what I can tell, it should be." Espio replied. She gave a deep breath before speaking again.

"So, who's going first?"

"Allow me." The reptilian stepped in front of her and began to climb. Arby watched intently, growing more anxious by the second. She wondered how she hadn't thrown up yet.

"What do you see?" She asked impatiently, ignoring the new found washing machine in her stomach.

"Correction; _who_ do you see?" Espio growled, which the hedgehog knew wasn't aimed at her. Arby's ears lowered, but soon became alert again when the chameleon climbed completely out of the sewer.

"Dammit, Espio!" She cursed quietly before hurrying up the ladder. Once she was back on her feet, she followed Espio's gaze to see Nocturne and two others.

"Is that-?"

"Vector!" Espio cut the hedgehog off. Nocturne had Vector and a second crocodile trapped in what appeared to be a cage made entirely of fire. If either of them moved, they would be burned alive. The other crocodile appeared to have black scales and a blue underbelly with blue scales running down the centre of his or her back.

"_Who is that?"_ Arby thought upon noticing the other reptile.

"_That can't be…"_ Espio pondered briefly before Nocturne noticed the pair standing with angered faces.

"I was wondering when you fuckers were going to show up." She greeted without a care.

"_Polite as always."_ Espio thought.

"Where is Charmy?" The hedgehog whispered to the ninja, but he ignored the question as he focused on the chameleon female.

"Enough!" He demanded loudly. "You have done far too much to this city and this planet! This will end! Now!" Nocturne merely laughed off his threats.

"Are you blind?" She asked with an evil grin. "I have your boss and his buddy over here. You realise that I could take their lives in the blink of a ninja's eye, right?" Espio scrambled his brain for any kind of answer and realised that it was stood next to him with an anxious look. He suddenly turned his head.

"You need to slow time." He whispered sternly. Arby's eyes widened.

"You-you know the risks, right? Assuming what Eggman said was true. We haven't exactly tested it yet." The mammal told him.

"I'm aware of that, but we have no choice. I will not lose Vector to her and I know you won't either." After a few seconds of thought, Arby nodded. "Now, from what Shadow has shown me in the past, you can bring me with you through your time manipulation. You just have to keep a hold of me." Espio explained.

"Alright, take my hand." He did so without question while she dug her free hand into her jacket pocket, deciding to keep it in there so that the emerald remained hidden from Nocturne. Without allowing herself to doubt, she thought hard about slowing time and was speechless when the flames of the surrounding buildings appeared to slow down. "What. The. Fuck." She whispered in complete awe.

"My Chaos." Espio muttered as he too noticed the surroundings. "Come, we need to get the emeralds!" He ordered once he refocused on the task at hand. They both ran forward, but it was only about three seconds later that Arby felt the effects of using her Chaos abilities. She began panting heavily and her running speed quickly grinded to a halt. "Are you okay?!" Espio panicked. The hedgehog could only shake her head as her legs grew weaker. The chameleon reacted quickly and picked her up in his arms, continuing to run towards Nocturne. Espio adjusted so that he had one hand free and leapt over the other chameleon to retrieve the red emerald that was floating around her head. As soon as he landed back on the cracked dirt, Arby's powers wore off and time returned to normal. The first thing they all noticed was all the fire walls vanishing into nothingness, including the cage that the two crocodilians were being kept in.

"Shit!" Nocturne cursed. "How the fuck did that happen?" Seeing that the surrounding Mobians and humans on the streets had begun to charge, she wasted no time in grabbing the first thing she could and teleporting out of the area completely.

"Damn her running away; how pathetic!" The black and blue crocodile shouted with frustration. His eyes suddenly became alert however, when he noticed that Vector was missing. Espio on the other hand, became alert when the crowd continued to charge. It was only now that he realised that they could see Arby and that they still wanted her dead. The chameleon backed up, seeing no way out of the situation. The crocodile soon noticed the same and, as soon as he saw that it was Espio, took action.

Everyone halted and even backed up a little when the croc pulled out a chokuto that was surrounded by blue lightning.

"Back off!" He demanded in a cold voice. "Touch them and I'll burn you to a crisp!" Espio stood dumbfounded as he realised that it was exactly who he thought it was.

"Kyousuke?" He questioned. "It is you." Espio soon concluded. Now that he was right next to him, he could see his vibrant, blue eyes contrasting greatly with the surrounding flame-enveloped buildings. He wore a long coat, which stopped at around his ankles and plain, black shoes. Blue electricity ran up his coat, reminding everyone of his unique powers.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" The taller croc replied whilst keeping focused on the hundreds of civilians that surrounded them.

"That bitch destroyed our city!" One crowd member yelled out above the noise.

"That's funny; I don't remember her setting fire to buildings or killing people!" Kyousuke shouted back at him.

"Nocturne is the one you want!" Espio added.

"And how do you propose we stop her then, smart ass?!" The surrounding people had quietened significantly upon noticing the conversation.

"If you would be so kind as to let us leave, then we can find her and stop her ourselves." Espio told him.

"Where is she then?!" Both Espio and Kyousuke looked towards the heavily weakened hedgehog, hoping that Nocturne had provided her with said information.

"E-Eggman's… ship…" She panted. Kyousuke repeated her words, just in a louder voice. Nervous glances were shared around.

"You heard me! Are you going to let us finish what she started or are you all going to travel to that madman's ship and do it for us?" Silence followed. Kyousuke turned towards the chameleon and nodded. "Let's go. I've got your back." Espio nodded and began to walk in the direction of Eggman's fleet. The crowd stepped aside, not daring to touch them while the croc still had his electrified blade drawn. As they walked, Espio kept his fears hidden. He saw how much a few seconds of Chaos Control affected the mammal in his arms and he knew that they would have to teleport in order to get up to the doctor's flagship, as well as slow time again to retrieve the emeralds. He feared that she wouldn't be able to handle it.

"_Where the hell is Shadow?"_ He thought, knowing that unintentionally, her life depended on him.


	30. Welcome Home

**Hello everyone! It's that time again and this chapter is where everything kicks off!**

**Brace yourselves! This chapter is far longer than any of the others, five and a half thousand words roughly, but there is a good reason for this. A lot happens in this one, so I hope you're all ready! This isn't the last chapter though, so don't worry about that. :)**

**I've had a bumpy few days. The snake decided that he wanted to escape... three times. I soon found out that he had made a hole in the back of his terrarium and used that to escape. His heat mat also broke. Yeah... it's gonna be costly, but at least I won't wake up to a 6ft snake in the middle of the floor. XD! Other than that, it's been just a normal week, just like every other week.**

**With that said, I shall leave you to it! Enjoy! I cannot wait to see your reactions!**

**See you next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The three of them ventured through the city that they no longer recognised. Knowing that Nocturne wasn't in it made it feel oddly empty.

"Thanks for helping us back there." Espio spoke before the silence suffocated him.

"No problem. I know Arby is innocent, Nocturne just knows how to piss you off." Kyousuke explained with a friendly face.

"Was it her that made you come back?" The chameleon went on.

"No, I didn't really expect any of this to happen." The croc explained. "I actually came back to visit Vector and see how everyone else was doing. By the time I made it to the city however, it was pretty late and the weather was horrendous. I stayed out of sight for the night until Nocturne began her 'reign of terror'."

"That's why you're still here?"

"Sort of; I decided to stay to help some people out and maybe find you guys in the process. Seeing Vector like that though was something I shouldn't have seen." Kyousuke saddened when he brought up the Chaotix leader. They were close friends before Kyousuke left the city due to people fearing his powers.

"He was captured before you got there? Then Nocturne must have taken him from Chaotix." The chameleon concluded.

"Thought as much." Arby spoke, still being carried by the ninja.

"How are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm talking. That's a start." She replied, not moving at all.

"Maybe you should try to rest before we get there." Espio suggested.

"I'm hardly going to sleep while I'm being carried. No offence. I'll try though, but I doubt it'll do much."

"It's better than nothing. Rest your eyes for now." They all stayed quiet whilst the terrain slowly turned from tarmac to sand.

"So, who's she? She's caught my attention from the start." Kyousuke spoke to the reptile walking beside him.

"This is Arby. She and Nocturne are from an entirely different world and perhaps universe as well." Espio told him.

"Huh." The croc rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess there's more to her than I thought." Espio didn't reply as something in the distance caught his attention. Each step only solidified his thoughts.

"Is that smoke?" The chameleon eventually questioned at the bottom of a sand dune. Kyousuke looked up and reacted in a similar fashion.

"Yeah but, why the hell would there be smoke? We're out in the middle of nowhere." The crocodilian questioned.

"I agree, and Eggman's fleet isn't this close to the border." As if thinking the same thing, they both walked up the dune at an equal pace. Both their jaws dropped at the sight that lay before them.

It was like a graveyard. Ships were scattered across the sands, most of them being alight. Smoke flew freely from the vast amount of wreckage and stained the sky above them with a filthy grey. Arby opened her eyes, noticing that Espio had stopped and that they were both silent.

"Holy shit." She whispered. "Did Nocturne do this?"

"Unlikely. Even with her power, no one could bring down this many ships so quickly." The chameleon replied.

"Plus, we would've heard them coming down or at least felt the tremors from the impacts." Kyousuke added.

"So, what did this?" Arby questioned further.

"That's not what we should be worrying about." The croc said. "We need to find which ship is Eggman's." Arby felt a tad awkward having someone instruct her that wasn't Espio.

"I never did ask, who are you exactly?"

"Good question. My name's Kyousuke, an old friend of Vector's. Espio told me a bit about you, mentioning that you're from another world?" His tone was friendly enough, but she wasn't so quick to trust and decided to keep her little backstory to herself.

"It's a long story. I'd rather not talk about it." The taller reptile nodded before turning his attention back to the scene in front of him.

"How on Mobius are we going to find her amongst all of this? There are literally hundreds of ships here." Espio voiced his concerns, seeing no options within the maze of metal.

"From pretty much everything I've seen and played, Eggman's ship should be the most obvious one. It's not like we haven't been there before. Like Tails said, 'it's the biggest one with the biggest moustache'." Arby advised, despite it being blown up during their first visit.

She thought back to the events at Tails' house. Should they have stayed there? Granted, they wouldn't be this close to stopping Nocturne if they had, but perhaps the others had survived and were just injured. Guilt flooded her at the thought and only got worse as Charmy entered her mind. "Do you think he's okay?" She said softly, trying to hold back tears.

"Who?" Espio questioned.

"Charmy." The chameleon let out a sigh before answering.

"If Vector was alive, then Charmy should be also. It does ease me to some extent knowing that Nocturne doesn't have him, but he's also loose in a city that has turned against each other. He's smart. He knows not to be out in the open. Hopefully we'll find him before food and drink becomes an issue." The hedgehog relaxed a little at how much faith the reptile had in the young bee.

"Well, we're not going to find anything by just standing here." Kyousuke announced.

"At least I don't have to use Chaos Control." Arby added, weakly trying to brighten the mood.

They all began their hunt through the mass grave of ships. Luckily, the smoke escaping them was heading swiftly upwards thanks to a gentle breeze, meaning that there was nearly no smoke at all on the ground. They passed by ship after ship for what felt like hours, but in truth, they hadn't been able to tell the time for over three months now due to the never ending darkness.

* * *

A while later after walking in complete silence, Espio noticed a towering silhouette in the distance. The dark croc was quick to see the chameleon stop walking and followed his gaze.

"Do you see that?" The ninja asked.

"Yeah, seems much taller than anything else around here." Kyousuke stated the obvious, but the other two agreed nonetheless.

"It's worth a look." Arby said with a hint of curiosity in her voice.

"Do you think you can walk?" Espio questioned.

"I might as well give it a shot." Carefully, he placed the hedgehog back on her own feet. After holding onto his shoulder for a few seconds, she steadied and nodded. The trio moved ahead, making sure that Arby could keep up. Once they were at the base of the tower, it was unmistakable.

"Was it always this daunting?" Arby commented. Of course, being on the ship in the past didn't really give a sense of how enormous it truly was. Now however, even with it half-buried, it was at least, if not, taller than some of the skyscrapers back in the city. Like the other ships, it had many out-of-control fires and bits of it missing, but for the most part, it was still intact and a perfect place for a psycho to hide. She did wonder how he had another ship so quickly. Perhaps he had a backup or just got his robots to build another one. The thought was brief and she brushed it off, deciding that keeping up with the other two was more important.

"We've gotten this far." Espio spoke strongly. He was not going to give up and neither was Kyousuke, even if Arby was having her usual doubts. "It's time to finish this."

They scouted the outer perimeter to eventually find a gaping hole, which allowed them to climb inside. The corridors were eerily quiet and the three of them each had their concerns. Regardless, Espio kept up his confident façade and spoke.

"Can you tell where Nocturne is?" He asked the nervous hedgehog next to him.

"No, but the emerald can." She reminded them as she pulled out the real emerald from her other pocket, which Espio had given to her to keep safe.

"Okay, but how will we know?" Kyousuke asked.

"The emerald will get brighter the closer we get." Espio explained. "We're just going to have to wander around until then." The crocodile nodded. The two males both began walking until Espio noticed that Arby was stood still and highly alert of her surroundings. Kyousuke noticed a moment later.

"Is she alright?" He questioned with a confused look.

"She's had some… horrid experiences here. Let me talk to her for a minute." The croc understood and allowed Espio to approach her while he kept his distance.

"Arby?" He asked as he gently placed a hand on each shoulder. Arby's eyes darted up to his with fear clear within them. She didn't speak. "I cannot begin to imagine what you went through the last time you were here, but I promise you that Eggman will not hurt you again."

"B-but what if-"

"No." He cut her off. "He will not get near you. I will make sure of it. Just stay near me, okay?" He reassured.

"N-no problem." Espio smiled warmly before leading the way with Arby behind him and Kyousuke at the back. If the darkness wasn't enough to freak everyone out, then the red lights fading in and out would do it.

"Not your typical underground corridor." Kyousuke pointed out, reading everyone's minds.

"You think?" Arby replied with an anxious voice.

"I do find it odd how the doctor hasn't spoken to you in a while." The chameleon said out of nowhere.

"I'm just thankful that he hasn't shocked me. Maybe Nocturne killed him." The hedgehog suggested.

"That would be nice. It's about time something good came out of all this." The croc spoke hopefully. Espio kept his eyes on the fiery gem in front of him as they passed through the ship. Every locked door they came across was knocked down by Kyousuke and his chokuto; it was loud, but effective. Distant noises caused them to jump on occasion. Arby could've sworn it was someone screaming, but upon asking the others, they said that they didn't hear anything.

"It's getting brighter." Espio's sudden announcement made the hedgehog jump yet again.

"Th-then we should b-be close." Her stuttering only concerned the chameleon further.

"Are you okay?"

"D-do I look okay to you?" He took this opportunity to study her closely. The first thing that caught his attention was her eyes. The white in them was stained with red and heavily bloodshot and the colour they had was now faded. Her body as a whole was shivering and she kept glancing around as if something was about to jump out and attack. Her fur was scruffy and her clothes were dirty and stained with dried blood. It wasn't until now that he realised just how much her experiences here had taken their toll. The chameleon held out the emerald to Kyousuke before explaining.

"Take the lead. I'll stay at the back with Arby." The croc nodded before taking the gem and moving just ahead of them. "You will get through this." He spoke softly to Arby.

"I'm not so sure." She told him. "I'm obviously a wreck and I'm hearing shit that you can't."

"Try to focus on something else." He instructed as he took her hand once more, causing her to give him a confused look.

"_That worked."_ He thought smugly before leading her forward. After more seemingly endless walking, the crocodile spoke again.

"I don't think this thing could get any brighter." He stated as he showed them the emerald that caused them to divert their eyes so that they could adjust.

"It shouldn't be far now." Espio concluded.

"I can see another door. Take this so I can get it open." Kyousuke said as he passed the gem back to Espio. The two stood back as the black and blue reptile got out his trusty chokuto and effortlessly swung at the metal barricade. The electricity from his blade flashed the entire corridor blue until the door slammed to the ground, revealing what they had been looking for.

Before them, was a chameleon with six gems circling her head. Behind her, were a crocodile and a human both chained to the wall.

"Oh no." Arby whispered as she internally began to panic. Espio growled as did Kyousuke, who stared angrily at her.

"I've been waiting for you, dear sister of mine." Both Espio and Kyousuke looked towards the hedgehog who, to the surprise of both of them, began to walk forward. Espio was about to stop her, until Kyousuke held him back with one large hand.

"Nocturne." She began. "I-I simply don't know what to say to you." The chameleon looked at her with a blank expression.

"Then allow me to speak." She stepped closer to her sister and stared at the collar around her neck. "Eggman told me what he had done to you. Did you know that was meant for me?" Arby's eyes widened at this.

"What?"

"Yeah. That collar, those wires and the many scars were originally intended for me. I was the powerful one but, at the time, I was useless. He only went for you because he thought you could stop me." Nocturne explained.

"I'm about as powerful as a wooden door." Arby replied. "I don't stand a chance against you." She admitted.

"I'm fully aware of that, but I also know that you could be a lot stronger…" She took the purple emerald from above her and handed it to the hedgehog. "…with a little help." Arby took the gem in her hand and stared at its infinite beauty.

"W-what are you saying?" Arby stuttered.

"I'm giving you a chance. We've been through hell, both here and on Earth, but now we can put all that behind us and be the sisters we once were." The mammal was only baffled further by her words.

"I don't understand-"

"She will never listen to you! Not after everything you have done!" Espio shouted, cutting off Arby altogether.

"Is that so?" Nocturne replied. Arby didn't have the confidence to say anything else. "Then there is only one thing left to do." The chameleon launched her hedgehog sibling past Espio and out into the empty halls with a short, but very powerful gust of wind.

"_That's her out of the way."_ She thought.

"Arby!" Espio shouted, before his attention was brought back to her attacker. "You'll pay for this. Every single bit of it." The ninja growled.

"I welcome you to try." Nocturne mocked. The male chameleon's eyes narrowed as he unsheathed his sword. His amber pupils studied her closely and kept track of her every move. He was ready for anything she was about to throw at him… or at least he thought he was.

Nocturne grinned, but then vanished. Espio instantly turned 180ᵒ, only to receive a slam to the face from a rock that the chameleon female had summoned.

"I thought you were a ninja?" Nocturne asked as she stood over the dazed and bleeding reptile. "You weren't expecting me to draw it out like old Egghead over there, were ya?" He couldn't reply and instead kept trying to keep a hold of his consciousness. "I'll admit that I normally would, since his way of fighting is far more fun, but right now, I have things to take care of. So, if you'll excuse me." As soon as she said this, she brought her boot down hard onto his head, knocking him out instantly.

"Come on! Come on!" Vector pleaded as Kyousuke carefully took off his restraints, being careful not to injure him.

"Give me a second." The dark croc replied.

"We don't have a second!" Vector told him. Kyousuke turned around, only to notice Espio unconscious and Nocturne approaching. Arby was nowhere to be seen. He put any questions to the back of his mind and focused on freeing his crocodilian friend.

"Got it!" He announced as Vector dropped to the floor and cracked his knuckles.

"Then let's show this psycho that we mean business!" Vector was ready with his brute strength, while Kyousuke unsheathed his chokuto and stood with the blade in front of him.

"My, my, don't you two look dramatic." The two crocs gave each other a momentary glance before staring back at her.

"You ain't getting past us!" Vector shouted.

"This is your last chance; drop the crap, or get destroyed." Kyousuke threatened, but Nocturne couldn't care less for either of their words. Her glowing, green eyes rolled and her face became annoyed.

"I don't have time for this shit." She repeated the tactic she used on Espio and teleported behind the two, tall males. A strong jet of water struck Vector's back and sent him flying into the wall at the opposite end of the room.

"Vector!" Kyousuke shouted, but the croc was motionless upon the metal floor. "You bitch!" He yelled with anger at seeing his friend hurt. He launched himself at her out of rage. The difference this time was that he had somehow transformed himself into a neon blue lightning bolt. The croc moved so fast that Nocturne couldn't possibly react quickly enough. Kyousuke slammed into her and sent her into the wall behind, before turning back into his Mobian form and pinning her by the wrists.

"What the fuck?!" She shouted with a mix of confusion and frustration.

"I've been observing you for quite a bit now. It looks like the only way you can use your abilities is by summoning them through your hands. It's just too simple." Kyousuke taunted. She would never admit it, but he was right and now she was in trouble, since kicking him where she thought it would hurt didn't seem to do anything. "What's that going to do? I'm a crocodile, not a human." He added, as if reading her exact thought.

"_Fuck…"_ She looked around, trying to find some way out of her little predicament, but without her hands, she couldn't do a thing. Kyousuke used his powers to create restraints made out of pure lightning. Nocturne didn't dare to move. One of the things she noticed when she was tackled was that it hurt. It quickly dawned on her that her 'invincibility' was only true when she had all seven Chaos Emeralds. Right now, she only had five. _"Why didn't I realise that sooner?"_ She scolded herself again before looking up into Kyousuke's fury-filled, electric blue eyes.

"Sorry, but this is the end." The croc said as he brought his chokuto up from his side and held it dangerously close to Nocturne's throat. Suddenly, the croc's expression was one of pain before he unexpectedly collapsed right in front of her. Nocturne stared in disbelief to see behind the fallen croc, Arby, holding Espio's sword.

"H-holy shit! You couldn't have timed that better!" Nocturne praised as she approached her, since her restraints disappeared now that Kyousuke was unconscious.

"N-Nocturne…" Arby stuttered, tears falling without hesitation. The chameleon seemed confused.

"What? Did you kill him?" The hedgehog was quick to shake her head.

"No, I knocked him out with the hilt." She explained.

"Well, thanks! But why? I thought you were on their side?" Arby dodged the question altogether.

"You see that up there?" Nocturne followed her gaze until she noticed some kind of metal, circular device with a couple of steps leading up to it.

"Yeah, what of it?" The chameleon asked, seeing nothing special.

"That is a Gateway." Eggman suddenly spoke from his place on the wall. "It is where a portal can form."

"No way!" Nocturne shouted with excitement.

"Eggman used it to bring us here." Arby added.

"Wait, we landed in the middle of the city, not here." Nocturne pointed out.

"That is because this is a Gateway entrance, not an exit. Entrances are fixed, while exits can pop up pretty much anywhere. It's fascinating." Eggman told them.

"So, how did you know that was something to do with the portals?" Nocturne asked. Arby shrugged.

"The only things I could go on were the fact that the portal we went through was circular and that Eggman had something to do with it. We're on his ship and this is circular. A long shot I know, but Eggman confirmed it for us." The hedgehog explained her thought process, even if it was a guess.

"Then, why did you bring it up? You don't seriously want to go back there, do you?"

"I want this to end with as few people getting hurt as possible. I don't care what you do, you are still my fucking flesh and blood and I want you alive!" Nocturne was caught off-guard by her sister's sudden outburst and her sudden words.

"You… you care for me that much?" The chameleon couldn't help but question. Arby continued to cry, but managed a small nod. She wrapped her arms around the shaking hedgehog and held her tight. "Arb…" Nocturne felt a sudden sense of sadness. "Arb, I-what do I do?" Arby held her sister tighter at the innocence in her voice.

"Eggman will help me to activate the portal and then you will escape." Nocturne suddenly moved the hedgehog until she was at arm's length. Her eyes were wide and tear-stained.

"W-what?!" She exclaimed. "You're coming with me, right?" Arby shook her head.

"I will make sure that you don't have to worry about any of this anymore. I will make sure that no one comes after you." Nocturne had no words.

"Hey! Who said I was helping either of you?!" Eggman complained.

"It's either that, or you have each and every limb shattered!" Arby hissed fiercely, earning even more shock from her chameleon sister.

"Ok! Ok! Ok! Calm down! I'll help!" The doctor sighed nervously as Arby went to the control panel in the corner.

"What do I do?" Eggman guided her through each and every step. It was very complicated, but all Arby had to do was listen and press everything that he told her to.

After a few tense minutes, they were nearly done.

"Ok, do you see that lever on the wall next to you? Pull that down." Arby did just that and a portal suddenly began to form inside the Gateway. It was only now that Nocturne snapped out of her trance and realised that Arby was serious with what she had told her earlier. She ran to her and placed her hands on her shoulders.

"A-Arby, think about what you're doing! I'm not just going to leave you behind! You wouldn't do that to me, would you?!" Arby's mouth opened slightly when Nocturne fell to her knees crying. "Dammit, Arby! We've been together our entire lives! Please don't make me leave! You're the only reason that I still have some shroud of emotion left in me! I would be lost without you! Neither of us can cope without the other! You know that! Please! Don't leave me!" Arby felt a tremendous amount of guilt. Nocturne had little to no grasp of how to live life in a physical body. Arby was her only guide, her only stability. She knew Nocturne would lose all sense of sanity without her and Arby knew that she herself would likely fall down a similar spiral. She joined her sister on her knees and hugged her tightly.

"It'll be okay, Nocturne. It always is, right? You'll be alive and that's what's important. Yes, you'll be somewhere else, but once all of this has blown over, then we can find each other again. I don't know how, but we will. You focus on that and you'll be fine." Arby used one arm to carefully remove the remaining emeralds from around Nocturne's head. The chameleon watched as each gem was taken, but she felt no need to get them back. She stayed on the ground as Arby got to her feet and stood behind her. Nocturne continued to stare at the ground. She wished things were simpler, easier and back to normal, whatever that meant. Suddenly, her world went black and she collapsed to the ground with a thud.

"You'll never know how much I didn't want to do that." Arby stood with a guilt-stricken face at Nocturne's unconscious body. The hedgehog returned the sword back next to Espio, so that he wouldn't question anything when he woke up. Once done, she took Nocturne in her arms and approached the portal. "Everything will be okay. She'll be alive and so will everyone else. No one has to die." She reassured herself.

"The possibility of where she'll end up is endless. I hope you realise that." Eggman spoke again. "Trying to fix a location is far more time consuming."

"It will do for now." She looked to see the other's beginning to stir. "We don't have the time." Using what little strength she had, she said her goodbyes to Nocturne before throwing her through the portal. "Goodbye, Nocturne. Wherever you end up, please stay safe." Without thinking, she ran to the lever and pushed it up, turning the portal off. She then went to sit on one of the steps in front of the Gateway and allowed silent tears to fall.

Espio was the first to awaken. His entire face stung as he looked around, only to see Arby awake and Vector and Kyousuke unconscious. He sat up with a painful groan, which caught the hedgehog's attention. She ran over to him and helped him to his feet.

"A-are you okay?!" She stuttered.

"I think so. What happened?" He asked as he tried to wake the other two. She inwardly began to panic. She was going to have to lie to him. After everything they'd been through, could she do it? It was for the better, right? Her sister would be safe and so would Mobius.

"Nocturne knocked out the other two and then escaped through the portal over there." She pointed it out to Espio, who got up with haste.

"Damn! We have to go after her!"

"No!" Arby said a bit too quickly, before calming. "We don't. You see… the-the portal malfunctioned as soon as she went through, meaning that she um…"

"Because of that, Nocturne is effectively trapped in the Void with no means of escape." Eggman finished for her. She could tell that her face had gone instantly pale. Was that true? Had she just killed her own sister? Espio looked back at Arby, to notice instantly her face change colour.

"Arby, I'm sorry." Espio spoke softly before pulling her into a hug. She felt physically ill. She thought she had lied, or perhaps Eggman had seen past it and tricked her into killing Nocturne herself. A deadly mixture of fury and guilt boiled inside her, but for the sake of her 'lie', she had to keep it hidden.

* * *

_-SELF DESTRUCT SEQUENCE INITIATED-_

* * *

"What?!" They both exclaimed. Espio rushed over to Vector and Kyousuke to wake them up, while Arby glared at the doctor.

"What? I'm not allowed to have my own fun?" An evil smirk spread across his face. "You see, I have a device hidden in my jacket. It uses voice recognition and can connect to the network that spans the entire fleet. Because of that, you have 60 seconds to run before the explosives hidden in this room obliterate you."

* * *

_-SELF DESTRUCT IN 60 SECONDS-_

* * *

"What is it with you and blowing shit up?!" Arby yelled.

"If I can't rule this world, then no one can." Eggman finished.

"Come on!" Vector yelled as he and Kyousuke dashed out of the room. Espio grabbed her by the wrist and was about to drag her out until she pulled back, forcing him to turn around. A distinct knot formed in his stomach when he saw her unusually serious expression.

"Arby, we don't have time for this!" He said quickly, trying to dismiss it, but Arby wasn't going to let him.

"Espio, there is no chance that we are going to get out of here in one minute. I will slow things down while you get out of here." The chameleon's eyes widened significantly before he grabbed her by the shoulders.

"N-no! Don't you even think about it! You are coming with us!" He ordered, but the hedgehog continued to argue.

"Listen to me, Es! If I come with you now, then we are all dead! The very least I can do is make sure you make it." The chameleon was quick to share his confused thoughts.

"Why can't you slow time and come with us?" He asked.

"From what I know, it only works around a certain area. If I am with you, then the ship will detonate anyway. If I am here where the explosives are, then they won't go off and you can get more distance." Espio was more confused.

"Even so, I still need you so that your manipulation doesn't affect me or the others."

"It's not me you need." She handed the seven Chaos Emeralds to him and kept the fake one for her to use. Espio was speechless. He was trying to find some reason for her not to do this, but his mind was blanked or blinded by panic. All he could manage was the slow shaking of his head.

"Y-you… Arby…" He could barely talk anymore. Tears soon began to fall and not once did he try to force them back. "Please…" She allowed a smile whilst crying herself.

"There are no words to explain how thankful I am for everything you and everyone else have done for me." As she spoke, she untied the bandanna from around her neck and retied it around Espio's. His face was the picture of sadness.

"Don't go." His voice was so gentle that Arby almost didn't recognise it. They placed their arms around each other, temporarily ignoring everything that was going on around them.

"You're the greatest friend I've ever had, Espio. I can die happy knowing that you'll make it out of this."

* * *

_-SELF DESTRUCT IN 10 SECONDS-_

* * *

"Arby?" Espio questioned with the most nervous voice she had ever heard come out of him.

_-9-_

"Go! You'll be fine! I promise!" She yelled as she backed away from him.

_-8-_

"Goodbye Arby." He took one last look before turning and sprinting out of sight.

_-7-_

"Goodbye… Espio." She whispered to herself as more tears heavily blurred her vision.

_-6-_

Espio was quick to catch up with the others. He ran alongside Vector first and handed a gem to him.

"What's this for and where's Arby?" The green croc asked. Espio didn't answer and handed another emerald to Kyousuke.

_-5-_

"Espio?" The black croc questioned, equally confused.

"Just shut up and run!" He yelled at them.

_-4-_

The two larger reptiles were stunned when they noticed the lights flashing become slower. They didn't have time to question and followed Espio who was a few steps ahead of them. The ship was like an enormous maze and it seemed that they wouldn't find the way out, but with how fast they were all sprinting, it wasn't long before sunlight caused each of their eyes to water.

"Through there!" Kyousuke informed them as they all leapt out of the hole in the side and continued running as far from the ship as they could.

* * *

Meanwhile, Arby was on her hands and knees fighting to stay awake. Espio was firmly on her mind and was the only force keeping her from passing out altogether. Despite the sudden pain that began to pass through her, she smiled. For once in her life, she felt as if she had a place, a purpose and a reason for sticking around. She convinced herself that she had saved Nocturne and that she had saved at least three other important lives in return for her own.

"I did well, didn't I?" She asked despite knowing she wouldn't get a response. Not a single worry or regret filled her mind. She felt at peace. "I'm sure you're safe." She spoke as she thought about Nocturne. "I'm sorry that I won't be able to see you again." Her mind then travelled to the team that she had spent the majority of her time on Mobius with. "You've been an awesome father figure to me, Vector. I couldn't ask for a better little brother, Charmy and Espio…" A new wave of tears fell from her fading eyes. "…there will always be a special place for you."

_-3-_

"My dearest friends."

_-2-_

"This is goodbye."

_-1-_

Her eyes closed.


	31. Flawed Aftermath

**Hello everyone! Here we are, 31 chapters later and I'm sad to say that we are at the end of this tale. What a journey its been. This is the longest story I have written to date and I had so much fun writing it (Yes, even when it took four months to land on an ending)!**

**I would just like to say a massive thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed, favourited and everything else! All of you are awesome and I'm so glad to have shared this with you! Now though, it's time to lay it to rest.**

**There is also an Epilogue that I will upload immediately after a final spell-check. Waiting a week for a few hundred more words seems pointless, so it's being uploaded today!**

**Future plans? I'm terrible at them, hehehe. Even this was pretty much plucked from thin air. When I have an idea, I'll be sure to get it down on paper and see where it takes me. When that time comes, I hope you'll all be along for the ride! :)**

**I think that's everything. Stay tuned for the Epilogue!**

**With that, I shall say my farewell! See you all again soon!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

A colossal boom reached out across the desert plains. It was enough to send the trio face-first into the sand beneath, but before any of them could look up at their fast-approaching death, a hand grabbed them. A familiar voice shouted two words before their vision was blinded by white.

"Chaos Control!"

Suddenly, the deafening of the explosion was now a distant roar. Espio was the first to jump up and instantly got lost once his eyes saw the cloud of fire and smoke rise up from the horizon. His bottom lip trembled endlessly and more tears ran down his noticeably darker scales. The other two reptiles got up a few seconds later and also stared at what could have ended them, until Vector asked the one question Espio didn't want to answer.

"Es, where's Arby?" The chameleon held the red bandanna in his hand and simply shook his head. Vector's jaw hung slightly and his eyes widened. He couldn't believe it.

"That explains it. Everything slowing down… that was her, wasn't it?" Kyousuke asked. Espio nodded.

"That was a very brave move…" A deep voice sounded from behind them. The two crocodiles turned, but Espio didn't need to as he already knew who it was. "…and nearly a pointless one had it not been for me." This hit a nerve in the chameleon, who quickly turned and glared fiercely at the hedgehog.

"How dare you! Even now, the only thing you can think about is yourself!" Espio snapped. Shadow on the other hand, didn't even flinch.

"You misunderstand, chameleon. The ship detonating would have caused a chain reaction, causing the surrounding ships to explode and so on. You can see it happening already." He nodded towards the horizon as multiple clouds of fire erupted from the downed ships. "As such, you would have been killed either way if it wasn't for me teleporting you here." Espio backed down and slowly turned away. "I did not mean any disrespect. She did save your life after all."

"W-what happened?" Vector stuttered with tears of his own.

"She-she knew we wouldn't make it out with the time we had." The chameleon told them. "As a result, she stayed behind to slow the countdown so that we could escape. Because of that however…" He trailed off, not wanting to finish his sentence.

An extended amount of silence lasted between the four. No one had any idea what to say. The horizon was alit with flames as smoke continued to dance with the breeze. Dust devils would appear every now and then, but would then scatter into the wind. It was odd how mismatched the environment was compared to their situation. Since Nocturne wasn't around, the clouds that had been over the city had vanished, leaving behind a glorious day with only the slightest chill in the air. It was the first time any of them had seen real sunlight in over three months, but the journey to get there was still forcing tears.

"I am sorry." Shadow began. "But if I'm not mistaken, there was also a bee with you guys."

"Ah crap!" Vector groaned. "We have to find him!"

"I'll go with you." Kyousuke announced, receiving a small smile from his friend.

"I may as well give you a hand since I'm going back to the city anyway." The Ultimate Lifeform told them. "What about you, Espio?" It took the chameleon a few moments to answer, as if he nearly missed the question altogether.

"I need to be alone." He stated in a monotone voice.

"Alright, pal. Stay safe, okay?" Vector finished, but the chameleon didn't reply. He saddened before heading back with Shadow and Kyousuke, allowing Espio some time to himself.

* * *

"Any idea where he went?" Kyousuke asked as they returned to where the Chaotix used to be.

"I remember distracting Nocturne so that he could get away." He rubbed his head with one large hand to try and recall the events that seemed so long ago. "I'm pretty sure he went this way." Vector told the other two as he pointed to the street ahead of them. "After that though, is anybody's guess."

"It would be a miracle if he survived in the city on his own, never mind finding him." Shadow said, earning himself an annoyed look from Vector.

"I love the amount of faith you have in him. If this were the other way around, then Charmy would be certain that you were perfectly fine." The croc explained.

"That's a nice story, but I can take care of myself. He, on the other hand, is a child all by himself who likely thinks that his friends are dead." The hedgehog's words were cold, but likely true. The last thing the bee probably saw was Vector being teleported from Chaotix while he flew for his life. The chances of a Wolf Pack finding him were pretty high.

They wandered through the city for a long time. To their surprise, things seemed to be recovering already. People were no longer fighting and were instead helping each other with first aid, food, drink and anything else. The majority of the city's people were still in the centre where Espio and Kyousuke had seen them last.

"It's hard to believe that this was a hell-storm only a few hours ago." Kyousuke thought aloud.

"Nocturne and the darkness she caused may have had more of an impact of people's behaviour than we thought." Shadow suggested.

"It sure looks that way." Vector replied. "With any luck, Charmy will be here." Vector's voice then suddenly sounded terrified. "Oh no…"

"What is it?" Shadow questioned.

"How on Mobius am I going to tell him that Arby didn't make it? He's going to be devastated." Vector rubbed his face with his hand and stared up at the sun, letting out a long sigh. "Could this get any worse?"

"Just be honest with him." Shadow told him bluntly.

"I agree. It'll be painful without a doubt, but it will be better to tell him the truth rather than keep it from him. He'd only find out later on and get back at you." Vector knew Kyousuke was right, he just wished things were a little easier. Hadn't they been through enough?

About another hour had passed and there was still no sign of the bee amongst the resting crowd. The Chaotix leader was worried more than ever.

"H-he's gotta be somewhere!" Vector said in a not-so-subtle panic.

"Would you calm down? There are still people coming in. He may be with another group." Shadow tried to reason with him. As he continued to worry, someone came up behind the green reptile and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me?" A mature male voice spoke. The three of them turned to see a Mobian Husky wearing a checkered, blue jacket and white sneakers. "My name is Jak." He greeted before holding out his hand. Vector shook it first, then Kyousuke and then Shadow, even if he was a little bit more reluctant.

"I'm Vector. This is Kyousuke and this is Shadow." He introduced them and Kyousuke gave a small wave.

"Nice to meet you. I'm actually here because my friends and I met Espio a while back." Vector raised a brow at this.

"Really?" Jak nodded.

"Yes, he saved our lives actually. I was wondering if he was around. We wanted to thank him and give him something."

"Uh, he's not here…" He said whilst rubbing the back of his neck. "…but I'm his best friend. I could give your little gift to him, if you like?" Vector suggested.

"Well, it's actually kind of a gift for both of you." The croc looked confused.

"I don't understand."

"I'll get to the point. We were on a scouting run when we heard an explosion nearby. Our first instinct was to check it out until what I could only describe as a bullet slammed right into my friend, Dové. Upon further inspection however, it wasn't a bullet and instead a small, frightened bee."

"What?!" Vector exclaimed. Jak turned and gestured for someone to come over. The other three followed his gaze to see a black, shaggy Mobian wolf appear from the crowd with a sleeping bee in his arms and a shorter wolf female walking alongside him. "Ch-Charmy?" Vector stuttered. He was moved to tears just by seeing the little guy alive. Both wolves approached and said their greetings.

"Charmy told us all about you guys. So, when we saw a green crocodile looking very worried, we kinda put two and two together." Dové told him with a chuckle. "The name's Dové and this is my daughter, Angel." The only similarity between her and her father was the fact that they were both wolves. Dové wore a leather jacket and military-style boots, while Angel wore a basic black t-shirt and jeans with black sneakers. Her father was a black wolf with white hair and Angel was a white wolf with long, black hair that was tied into a ponytail. Vector introduced the group to the two wolves before focusing back on Charmy.

"Is he alright?" The croc asked.

"He's just fine. The little guy has been asleep for the past few hours. He completely missed the commotion that was happening earlier." Vector chuckled at this.

"He _would_ sleep through something like this." He joked. Carefully, Vector shook the bee's shoulder in order to wake him up. Charmy stirred at first before slowly opening his eyes and squinting to the sunlight. As soon as they adjusted, they instantly landed on a familiar crocodile smiling at him with tears rolling down his face. He stared for a few seconds before finding the one word he was looking for.

"V-Vector?" He stuttered, clearly about to cry. Vector could only nod as any words he had were long gone. "VECTOR!" Charmy shouted as he leapt out of Dové's arms and into the croc's. The young insect wept into his shoulder while Vector held him tightly. Kyousuke couldn't help but smile at the sight while Shadow remained neutral.

"What's up with you? Aren't you glad he's alright?" The black croc asked with a smirk.

"Of course, but there's someone else that I'm worried about." Kyousuke wasn't sure who he meant at first, but it didn't take him long to realise.

"Do you think he's okay?"

"I'm going to go find out. You stay here. Vector is going to need you for when he tells Charmy of Arby's fate." Kyousuke nodded and watched as the hedgehog skated off into the distance.

* * *

The sun was already setting as the mammal passed the border. He could remember exactly where he was, but decided to not Chaos Control. The chill in the air was far more noticeable now and part of him hoped that he wasn't still out here. A sudden sadness came over him when he saw that he was.

Shadow stopped skating some distance away and walked calmly over to him. Espio was simply sitting with his arms on his knees, staring at the same horizon. He could hear the sand giving way to the being that approached, but didn't bother to ask who it was. There was only one other person as silent as he was.

"Tell me now if I am wasting my time before I get comfortable." Shadow stated as he stood behind the chameleon. He didn't answer and instead moved over slightly, allowing the hedgehog a seat next to him. "I won't lie to you." The black mammal began once he was settled. "I didn't think you would be this upset."

"I didn't think I would get that close." He replied with very little energy.

"Close?" Shadow questioned. Espio gave a defeated sigh before explaining.

"I hated her, Shadow. I hated her so much because of what she originally was. If this had happened in the first week of her being here, I would have said 'good riddance' and that would have been it. I thought my ninja training had prepared me for anything and everything, but this… this I just wasn't ready for. Over time, I got to know her and I saw that she was nothing like them. She wasn't afraid of being afraid, yet stood up for those that needed it, Charmy being an example. When she did stand up to someone, she didn't use violence at all. The worst she did was yell and that was at me."

"I bet that was a sight." Shadow chuckled. Espio nodded and allowed himself to smile.

"Yes, it certainly caught me off-guard." His smile faded and he returned to his story. "She had a horrendous past back on Earth. She was at the mercy of others in school and of her father at home." For the first time, Shadow looked shocked.

"Are you serious?" Espio nodded.

"Her best friend was killed and her only other friend was a psychopath: Nocturne." The chameleon clarified. "I truly thought that after everything she had been through, she might have been able to just live her life, which is something the rest of us take so much for granted." Shadow observed the purple ninja closely. A thought came to him, which he honestly didn't like, but he chose to voice it nonetheless.

"You liked her, yes?" The sudden question rose Espio's suspicion. Why would he ask that?

"What do you mean by that?" He asked in return, keeping his eyes on the hedgehog.

"You know exactly what I mean by that. The question now is; will you admit it?" Espio looked to the sand at his feet, watching the infinite amount of grains pass by with the breeze.

"Shadow, even if that was the case, I wouldn't pursue it." Espio went on before the hedgehog could question him further. "Don't bother asking me why. You already know." Shadow turned back to him only to notice his cold, yet strangely hollow eyes staring into his.

"I get it." He said quietly, feeling uncomfortable by what Espio was referring to. "My lack of experience in this sort of area is no excuse for my actions towards you. As cold as I can be, I was too cold to you and you didn't deserve it." Espio simply couldn't look at him. Instead, he remained silent, still and only listened. "I owe you an apology."

"You already apologised." Espio stated flatly, remembering his words back in the sewers of the city.

"A simple 'I am sorry' is not enough. I owe you an explanation at the very least."

"Do you have a reason?" The chameleon asked suddenly. Shadow paused before looking guilty.

"I thought I did. I said that you were my weakness, among other things. I was trying to protect myself from the ridicule of others and the watchful eye of those that class themselves as 'better'. In truth, I was weak. I ran when my own thoughts got the better of me; thoughts that shouldn't have been there." He turned to the ninja with a serious, yet worried look. Despite trying to ignore it, Espio looked back at him. "I was so focused on what we were that I forgot that I could not care less about the thoughts of others. You were the only thing that mattered, but I didn't realise that until I Chaos Controlled away. Of course, I was too stubborn to go back, not that I deserved your forgiveness and I still don't now." By now, a million thoughts and emotions were running through the reptile. This was a state that he was not used to in the slightest. What the hell was he supposed to do? "To answer your question, I have no reason and I am pathetic for that. I apologise for the pain that I have caused you and the scars that I have left. You can either accept my words or toss them to the sand. The choice is yours and I will not argue."

"Shadow…" His name was the only word Espio could manage before staring back at his feet. To the hedgehog's surprise, the chameleon rested his head upon his shoulder. "I don't know what to do." He told him with a weak voice.

"You can do whatever you want." The mammal told him. With tears, Espio replied.

"I want to forget. I want to forget it all. Start again, without a word or an explanation as to why." Shadow felt deeply saddened, but at the same time understood.

"I can help you with that, should you wish for it." He cast away any doubts and fears and carefully took a hold of the reptilian's hand. Espio looked with momentary widened eyes before relaxing and gripping his hand in return.

"Promise me one thing." Espio spoke with his voice coming back to him.

"Anything." Shadow told him.

"Don't ever bring me back here." The hedgehog nodded.

"I promise." Shadow took out one of the emeralds that he now had in his possession and held it in front of them both. "Chaos Control." He whispered.


	32. Epilogue

**Here it is! I hope you all enjoyed! Feel free to R&amp;R and what not. :)**

**Since I said pretty much everything I wanted to in the last chapter, this will naturally be brief.**

**Much love to you all! See you again soon!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

It was just another chapter in life, was it not? No disaster or tragedy could halt time. No amount of pain can stop the larger course of action. This was no different.

The city had begun to rebuild. People worldwide helped the city to recover; it was like a charity where the money donated actually went to the cause. Many damaged structures were being repaired around the clock and the law enforcement services were already up and running again. All the major facilities like hospitals, police stations and other public services were the first to be rebuilt with other 'less vital' areas following afterwards. The lives that were scarred by the events however, would never be the same.

Despite Nocturne's efforts, all the Mobians inside of Tails' house had survived the destruction. The young fox's Chaos Detector had gone off before the chameleon had gotten there, allowing them to escape through a nearby back entrance. Knuckles carried Sonic while they all followed Tails to an unknown location. They debated informing Espio and Arby, who were in the underground bunker, but with the lack of time, Tails reassured them that they would be just fine before quickly fleeing the building.

Sonic, now had to cope with being bed ridden all day thanks to Nocturne brutally breaking both of his legs. The worst part though, wasn't not being able to move, but was having to cope with Amy being there almost 24/7 to 'comfort' him. Tails would visit of course, but he was busy most of his days with projects and continuous repairs on his house.

Knuckles didn't visit at all. In fact, he refused to leave Angel Island again due to his fear of another catastrophe catching him unawares. The echidna also blames himself stating that: 'I let my guard down and couldn't help those in need. I failed my duty as a Guardian. The least I can do now is make sure that anything even close to this never happens again'.

Vanilla and Cream lived with Tails after the event, as did other Mobians until their houses were rebuilt. Any buildings that weren't completely burnt to the ground were far too damaged, and therefore, dangerous for people be near or in. Once it was rebuilt, they moved back in, but chose to visit the Chaotix more often than they used to. Knowing of what they had been through, the two rabbits help out with simple day to day tasks, like cleaning and getting groceries. Even Amy shows up at times to lend a hand. Vector is grateful for the help, but tries to keep the Chaotix Detective Agency as independent as possible.

Vector and Charmy also had to stay with Tails. Their 'new' home had a similar layout, but had very nice furniture and appliances. The Chaotix leader was concerned about the huge increase in bills, until the Mayor of the city informed him that he wouldn't have to pay the bills again. In his words, 'consider it a thank you for everything the Chaotix did for us, Arby included'. Vector still thinks about the young hedgehog and wishes that she could've been around to see all of this. He will sometimes cry at his desk.

Charmy, while still being a child, has quietened noticeably since the incident. His bond with Vector on the other hand, has grown enormously to the point where he now sees the croc as a father figure. The two are never far from each other and will often chat about those that are no longer around. One thing that will always be on their minds however, is the lack of a certain fuchsia chameleon.

Espio had not been seen since the desert. No one knows what happened to him after the events that occurred. Vector and Charmy even began a huge search, both in the city and out in the hopes of finding him. Nothing, not even a trace was ever found.

Another being that disappeared, which some of the city seemed to glance over, was Shadow. Kyousuke informed the Chaotix that the Ultimate Lifeform had gone to find Espio while they had reunited with Charmy. He also told them that he had no idea if he actually found Espio and in turn, had no clue if he was with him or not.

The black and blue crocodile decided to stay with the Chaotix for a while, thanks to Vector's persuasion. With time however, he realised that with his electrical abilities, he would be feared and hated since Nocturne possessed something similar. He decided to leave once again and not deal with all the resentment, but Vector pleaded for him to stay. It took a lot to convince one of the two to leave it alone, but Kyousuke was confronted by his memories once again and realized that he was just running away from his problems. He decided in the end to stay to see how things will work out for him and the future.

Jak, Sage, Zeus, Dové and Angel live together in a five bedroom house. They also stop by the Chaotix on occasion. Angel gets on well with Charmy, despite the age gap of about eight years. With time, they all became good friends and were welcomed into Chaotix as official members. Whenever they have the chance, Sage and Zeus secretly continue their search for Espio.

* * *

About two months after the incident, it was reported that a motorcycle was stolen from the newly rebuilt 'Super Mall'. The shop owner described it as a 'dark purple bike that had two, dark red lightning bolts; one on each side'. Amy smiled as she watched the story on the news channel. She remembered first meeting Arby, who was staring at a motorcycle with the exact same design at the time. It was a long shot, especially since neither of them knew about Arby's hidden love for motorbikes, but in her mind, Espio and Shadow probably had something to do with it.

Being convinced that they were both okay, Amy switched the TV off and headed for the door. Her destination today was the Chaotix H.Q. As she stepped outside though, a thought crossed her mind.

"_Should I tell them?"_ Her own feelings were hardly solid proof as to whether the missing duo was alright. To avoid conflict, she chose to keep it to herself. _"They left for a reason. If they wanted to come back, then they would."_ She told herself and with her smile quickly returning, she locked the door behind her and made her way across the city.

* * *

"Do you still have them?" A deep, male voice asked calmly.

"Of course." An equally deep male voice replied with a hint of frustration. "I didn't thieve them just to lose them."

"I was simply making sure." The duo had traversed the last peak and for the first time in ten years, their feet made contact with the darkened sands. His eyes looked worriedly towards the other male, who looked back with a serious expression.

"I still have not forgotten that day, nor have I forgotten the things we said." He took a deep breath and stared towards the empty horizon.

"But…" The other said, prompting the first to finish. He looked back to him once again, locking their gazes upon one another.

"But…" He loaded his handgun and held it firmly in his hand. "…I'm afraid I'm going to have to break that promise."


End file.
